The Time Course of Interpretation in Speech Comprehension

2010 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 121-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Delphine Dahan
Keyword(s):  
Language Comprehension ◽  
Speech Signal ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Context Effects ◽  
Early Research ◽  
Speech Comprehension ◽  
Temporal Window ◽  
Complex Process ◽  
Speech Segment

Determining how language comprehension proceeds over time has been central to theories of human language use. Early research on the comprehension of speech in real time put special emphasis on the sequential property of speech, by assuming that the interpretation of what is said proceeds at the same rate that information in the speech signal reaches the senses. The picture that is emerging from recent work suggests a more complex process, one in which information from speech has an immediate influence while enabling later-arriving information to modulate initial hypotheses. “Right-context” effects, in which the later portion of a spoken stimulus can affect the interpretation of an earlier portion, are pervasive and can span several syllables or words. Thus, the interpretation of a segment of speech appears to result from the accumulation of information and integration of linguistic constraints over a larger temporal window than the duration of the speech segment itself. This helps explain how human listeners can understand language so efficiently, despite massive perceptual uncertainty in the speech signal.

scholarly journals Mishearing as a Side Effect of Rational Language Comprehension in Noise

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marjolein Van Os ◽  
Jutta Kray ◽  
Vera Demberg
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Language Comprehension ◽  
Speech Signal ◽  
Speech Comprehension ◽  
Noisy Signal ◽  
Simple Consequence ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Rational Language ◽  
Listening Experiment

Language comprehension in noise can sometimes lead to mishearing, due to the noise disrupting the speech signal. Some of the difficulties in dealing with the noisy signal can be alleviated by drawing on the context – indeed, top-down predictability has shown to facilitate speech comprehension in noise. Previous studies have furthermore shown that strong reliance on the top-down predictions can lead to increased rates of mishearing, especially in older adults, which are attributed to general deficits in cognitive control in older adults. We here propose that the observed mishearing may be a simple consequence of rational language processing in noise. It should not be related to failure on the side of the older comprehenders, but instead would be predicted by rational processing accounts. To test this hypothesis, we extend earlier studies by running an online listening experiment with younger and older adults, carefully controlling the target and direct competitor in our stimuli. We show that mishearing is directly related to the perceptibility of the signal. We furthermore add an analysis of wrong responses, which shows that results are at odds with the idea that participants overly strongly rely on context in this task, as most false answers are indeed close to the speech signal, and not to the semantics of the context.

scholarly journals Cross-cultural Training and Second Language Learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Zhonghao Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Cultural Awareness ◽  
Second Language Learning ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Cross Cultural ◽  
Cultural Training ◽  
Cross Cultural Training ◽  
Complex Process ◽  
Culture Teaching ◽  
Culture And Language

Culture and language are inseparable, and cultures as groups adopt particular practices and norms of behavior. Culture teaching is a long and complex process concerning something more than language use itself. The two popular theories influencing practice today are the Constructivist and the Creative Constructionist approaches, and the technique for conveying cultural awareness is cultural assimilator, which has been designed for specific cultures around the world. Cross-cultural training can be used to promote cultural awareness, that is, sensitize people to the influence of culture on people’s values and behaviors and help them recognize and accept the existence of cultural differences.

scholarly journals A Systems Approach to Tissue Remodeling

2009 ◽  
Vol 131 (10) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ghassan S. Kassab
Keyword(s):  
Time Course ◽  
Systems Approach ◽  
Quantitative Description ◽  
Mathematical Expression ◽  
Step Function ◽  
Complex Process ◽  
New Findings ◽  
Flow Shear Stress ◽  
Time Courses ◽  
Mathematical Accuracy

Remodeling of tissue in response to physical stress is a very complex process. The changes in the stimulus (cause) and response (effect) must be measured and the results must be organized into mathematical forms that are suitable for predictions and applications. An experiment where the stimulus (pressure, flow, shear stress, etc.) can be changed approximately as a step function (a step plus a perturbation) and the response (structure, material properties, function, etc.), which can be measured over time, can be simulated by indicial response functions (IRFs). The IRF is a mathematical expression of the ratio of the change in a particular feature of the system in response to a unit step change in stimulus. The IRF approach provides a quantitative description of the remodeling process, simplifies the interpretation of data, and greatly increases the potential of using the experimental data for prediction of the outcome for future experiments. The objective of this review is to provide an overview of the IRF approach including some exemplary systems. The goal is to illustrate how the indicial expressions make it possible to integrate biological complexity by convolution. The time courses of stimuli represent half of the convolution while the time course of changes in response represents the second half of the convolution. The IRF approach provides an understanding of the physiological problems with mathematical accuracy and may be conducive to new findings.

How Age, Linguistic Status, and the Nature of the Auditory Scene Alter the Manner in Which Listening Comprehension Is Achieved in Multitalker Conversations

2015 ◽  
Vol 58 (5) ◽  
pp. 1570-1591 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meital Avivi-Reich ◽  
Agnes Jakubczyk ◽  
Meredyth Daneman ◽  
Bruce A. Schneider
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Comprehension ◽  
Listening Comprehension ◽  
Spatial Separation ◽  
Spoken Language ◽  
Vocabulary Knowledge ◽  
Speech Comprehension ◽  
Comprehension Skill ◽  
Auditory Scene

Purpose We investigated how age and linguistic status affected listeners' ability to follow and comprehend 3-talker conversations, and the extent to which individual differences in language proficiency predict speech comprehension under difficult listening conditions. Method Younger and older L1s as well as young L2s listened to 3-talker conversations, with or without spatial separation between talkers, in either quiet or against moderate or high 12-talker babble background, and were asked to answer questions regarding their contents. Results After compensating for individual differences in speech recognition, no significant differences in conversation comprehension were found among the groups. As expected, conversation comprehension decreased as babble level increased. Individual differences in reading comprehension skill contributed positively to performance in younger EL1s and in young EL2s to a lesser degree but not in older EL1s. Vocabulary knowledge was significantly and positively related to performance only at the intermediate babble level. Conclusion The results indicate that the manner in which spoken language comprehension is achieved is modulated by the listeners' age and linguistic status.

The Immediate Processing of Sentences

1977 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 135-146 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. W. Green
Keyword(s):  
Reaction Time ◽  
Speech Signal ◽  
Semantic Processing ◽  
Voluntary Control ◽  
Auditory Signal ◽  
Speech Comprehension ◽  
Integrative Process

Two independent groups of subjects, under instruction orienting them towards understanding or towards memorizing sentences were timed to respond to a brief auditory signal which occurred at some point during the course of a sentence. Latency appeared to be primarily a function of the task, such that the deeper the semantic processing of the sentence the longer the reaction time. Together with other aspects of the data, it is argued that such tasks affect the extent to which a subject retrieves the meanings of the words in a sentence and integrates them at the end of it. Concrete and abstract sentences were processed in fundamentally the same way. The conclusion drawn is that speech comprehension is an integrative process, under voluntary control, which collates together different aspects of the speech signal.

scholarly journals Directionality and context effects in word translation tasks performed by conference interpreters

2016 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Chmiel
Keyword(s):  
International Institutions ◽  
Language Use ◽  
Context Effect ◽  
Context Effects ◽  
Mental Lexicon ◽  
Lexical Retrieval ◽  
Semantic Constraint ◽  
Word Translation

AbstractProfessional interpreters employed by international institutions usually work into their L1 from their L2, while freelance interpreters tend to work both into and from their L1. A study was devised to see if the long-term interpreting unidirectional practice (in the L2–L1 direction only), in contrast to bidirectional practice (in the L2–L1 and L1–L2 direction), influences the speed of lexical retrieval manifested through shorter translation latencies. Forty-eight professional conference interpreters produced oral translations of nouns presented in isolation, in high context constraint sentences and in low context constraint sentences. Contrary to predictions, unidirectional interpreters did not manifest directionality asymmetry and their L2–L1 translation latencies were not shorter than L1–L2 translation latencies. Surprisingly, the L2–L1 direction advantage was found in the group of bidirectional interpreters. The data suggest that the dominant directionality in interpreting practice has little impact on the strength of interlingual lexical links in the interpreter’s mental lexicon or that other factors (such as language use, exposure and immersion) might offset any such impact. The study also revealed an expected context effect, which shows that interpreters use semantic constraint to anticipate sentence-final words.

scholarly journals Larval settlement and metamorphosis in a marine gastropod in response to multiple conspecific cues

PeerJ ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. e2295 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abigail E. Cahill ◽  
Spencer A. Koury
Keyword(s):  
Time Course ◽  
Larval Settlement ◽  
Chemical Cue ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Marine Gastropod ◽  
Crepidula Fornicata ◽  
Complex Process ◽  
Settlement And Metamorphosis ◽  
Full Factorial ◽  
Water Borne

Larvae of the marine gastropodCrepidula fornicatamust complete a transition from the plankton, where they are highly dispersed, to an aggregated group of benthic adults. Previous research has shown that selective settlement of larvae on conspecific adults is mediated by a water-borne chemical cue. However, variable experimental conditions have been used to study this cue, and standardization is needed in order to investigate factors that may have weak effects on settlement. In this study, we developed a time-course bioassay based on a full-factorial design with temporal blocking and statistical analysis of larval settlement rates in the lab. We tested this bioassay by examining settlement in the presence of an abiotic cue (KCl), and biotic cues (water conditioned with adult conspecifics and conspecific pedal mucus). Results confirmed settlement in the presence of both KCl and adult-conditioned water, and discovered the induction of settlement by pedal mucus. This optimized, standardized bioassay will be used in future experiments to characterize the complex process of larval settlement inC. fornicata, particularly to measure components of potentially small effect.

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