The Native-Language Benefit for Talker Identification Is Robust in 7.5-Month-Old Infants

Autor/inn/en	Fecher, Natalie; Johnson, Elizabeth K.
Titel	The Native-Language Benefit for Talker Identification Is Robust in 7.5-Month-Old Infants
Quelle	In: Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 44 (2018) 12, S.1911-1920 (10 Seiten) PDF als Volltext Verfügbarkeit
Sprache	englisch
Dokumenttyp	gedruckt; online; Zeitschriftenaufsatz
ISSN	0278-7393
DOI	10.1037/xlm0000555
Schlagwörter	Infants; Language Usage; Familiarity; Language Processing; Speech Communication; English; Polish; Adults; Novelty (Stimulus Dimension); Recognition (Psychology); Phonology; Eye Movements; Attention; Foreign Countries; Canada + Suchen Sie Ihr Suchwort? Infant; Toddler; Toddlers; Kleinkind; Sprachgebrauch; Sprachverarbeitung; English language; Englisch; Polnisch; Recognition; Wiedererkennen; Fonologie; Augenbewegung; Aufmerksamkeit; Ausland; Kanada
Abstract	Adults recognize talkers better when the talkers speak a familiar language than when they speak an unfamiliar language. This language familiarity effect (LFE) demonstrates the inseparable nature of linguistic and indexical information in adult spoken language processing. Relatively little is known about children's integration of linguistic and indexical information in speech. For example, to date, only one study has explored the LFE in infants. Here, we sought to better understand the maturation of speech processing abilities in infants by replicating this earlier study using a more stringent experimental design (eliminating a potential voice-language confound), a different test population (English- rather than Dutch-learning infants), and a new language pairing (English vs. Polish rather than Dutch vs. Italian or Japanese). Furthermore, we explored the language exposure conditions required for infants to develop an LFE for a formerly unfamiliar language. We hypothesized based on previous studies (including the perceptual narrowing literature) that infants might develop an LFE more readily than would adults. Although our findings replicate those of the earlier study--demonstrating that the LFE is robust in 7.5-month-olds--we found no evidence that infants need less language exposure than do adults to develop an LFE. We concluded that both infants and adults need extensive (potentially live) exposure to an unfamiliar language before talker identification in that language improves. Moreover, our study suggests that the LFE is likely rooted in early emerging phonology rather than shared lexical knowledge and that infants already closely resemble adults in their processing of linguistic and indexical information. (As Provided).
Anmerkungen	American Psychological Association. Journals Department, 750 First Street NE, Washington, DC 20002. Tel: 800-374-2721; Tel: 202-336-5510; Fax: 202-336-5502; e-mail: order@apa.org; Web site: http://www.apa.org
Erfasst von	ERIC (Education Resources Information Center), Washington, DC
Update	2020/1/01