Speech Perception and Language Acquisition in the First Year of Life

AbstractDespite the fact that many of the world's languages use lexical tone, the majority of language acquisition studies has focused on non-tone languages. Research on tone languages has typically investigated well-known tone languages such as Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese. The current study looked at a Limburgian dialect of Dutch that uses lexical pitch differences, albeit in a rather restricted way. Using a visual habituation paradigm, 6- to 12-month-old Limburgian and Dutch infants were tested for their ability to discriminate Limburgian tones. The results showed that both Limburgian and Dutch infants discriminate the Limburgian tones throughout their first year of life. The role of linguistic experience, acoustic salience, and the degree of similarity to the native prosodic system are discussed.

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Speech Perception in Infancy

The Oxford Handbook of Developmental Psychology, Vol. 1 ◽

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199958450.013.0031 ◽

2013 ◽

pp. 908-925 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Janet F. Werker ◽

Judit Gervain

Keyword(s):

Speech Perception ◽

Empirical Evidence ◽

Native Language ◽

Newborn Infants ◽

First Year ◽

Learning Mechanisms ◽

Environmental Input ◽

Perceptual Abilities ◽

First Year Of Life ◽

Different Levels

We discuss the development of speech perception and its contribution to the acquisition of the native language(s) during the first year of life, reviewing recent empirical evidence as well as current theoretical debates. We situate the discussion in an epigenetic framework in an attempt to transcend the traditional nature/nurture controversy. As we illustrate, some perceptual and learning mechanisms are best described as experience-expectant processes, embedded in our biology and awaiting minimal environmental input, while others are experience-dependent, emerging as a function of sufficient exposure and learning. We argue for a cascading model of development, whereby the initial biases guide learning and constrain the influence of the environmental input. To illustrate this, we first review the perceptual abilities of newborn infants, then discuss how these broad-based abilities are attuned to the native language at different levels (phonology, syntax, lexicon etc.).

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Speech Perception in Congenitally Deaf Children Receiving Cochlear Implants in the First Year of Life

Otology & Neurotology ◽

10.1097/mao.0b013e3181f2f475 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 31 (8) ◽

pp. 1254-1260 ◽

Cited By ~ 51

Author(s):

Bobby A. Tajudeen ◽

Susan B. Waltzman ◽

Daniel Jethanamest ◽

Mario A. Svirsky

Keyword(s):

Speech Perception ◽

Cochlear Implants ◽

Deaf Children ◽

First Year ◽

First Year Of Life

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How Does Early Brain Organization Promote Language Acquisition in Humans?

European Review ◽

10.1017/s1062798708000513 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 16 (4) ◽

pp. 399-411 ◽

Cited By ~ 16

Author(s):

G. Dehaene-Lambertz ◽

L. Hertz-Pannier ◽

J. Dubois ◽

S. Dehaene

Keyword(s):

Language Acquisition ◽

Language Learning ◽

Speech Processing ◽

Functional Organization ◽

Word Segmentation ◽

First Year ◽

Brain Organization ◽

Verbal Stimuli ◽

Neuro Imaging ◽

First Year Of Life

Speech processing in adults relies on precise and specialized networks, located primarily in the left hemisphere. Behavioural studies in infants indicate that a considerable amount of language learning already takes place in the first year of life in the domains of phonology, prosody, and word segmentation. Thanks to the progress of neuro-imaging, we can move beyond behavioural methods and examine how the infant’s brain processes verbal stimuli before learning. These studies reveal a structural and functional organization close to what is described in adults and suggest a strong bias for speech processing in these regions that might guide infants in the discovery of the properties of their native language, although no evidence can be provided as yet for speech specificity of such networks.

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