STiLL - Speech Technology in Language Learning May 25-27, 1998 Marholmen, Sweden

The Effect of Cue-Enhancement on Consonant Perception by Non-Native Listeners: Preliminary Results

Valerie Hazan, A. Simpson

Department of Phonetics and Linguistics, University College London, London, U.K.

An experiment was performed to test the perceptual benefits for non-native listeners of enhancing consonantal regions which contain a high density of acoustic cues to phonemic contrasts in English. Groups of Spanish-Ll, Japanese-Ll and native English listeners heard nonsense VCV material produced by two different speakers and composed of 12 consonants presented in two vocalic contexts. Both natural and enhanced versions of these stimuli were presented in a background of speech-shaped noise at 0 dB SNR. All three groups of listeners obtained significantly higher intelligibility scores for the enhanced VCVs. They also showed similar speaker effects. Consonant intelligibility scores are discussed in relation to the confusions expected on the basis of the phonological system of the listeners' LI.

Full Paper

Bibliographic reference.  Hazan, Valerie / Simpson, A. (1998): "The effect of cue-enhancement on consonant perception by non-native listeners: preliminary results", In STiLL-1998, 119-122.