Native Language Influence in the Segmentation of a Novel Language
Date
2016Author
Ordin, Mikhail
Nespor, Marina
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Mikhail Ordin & Marina Nespor (2016) Native Language Influence in the Segmentation of a Novel Language, Language Learning and Development, 12:4, 461-481, DOI: 10.1080/15475441.2016.1154858
Abstract
A major problem in second language acquisition (SLA) is the segmentation
of fluent speech in the target language, i.e., detecting the boundaries of
phonological constituents like words and phrases in the speech stream. To
this end, among a variety of cues, people extensively use prosody and
statistical regularities. We examined the role of pitch, duration, and transitional
probabilities (TPs) between adjacent syllables in the segmentation of
a novel language by native speakers of German and compared their
responses with the segmentation by the listeners with a phonologically
different native language: Italian. We used an artificial language with different
prosodic cues marking the boundaries of statistically defined words.
In artificial-language learning experiments, we compared how Germans and
Italians use prosodic and statistical cues for segmenting continuous speech.
We show that native phonology modulates the processing of prosodic cues
in novel languages. While native speakers of Italian interpret prosodic cues
at both the word and the phrasal level, native speakers of German interpret
them exclusively at the phrasal level. Phrasal prosody can facilitate the
segmentation of a novel language when prosodic and statistical cues lead
to the same segmentation solution. Word-level prosody does not necessarily
facilitate segmentation, but it can disrupt it when statistical and prosodic
cues lead to different segmentation solutions.