| Abstrakt: |
Recently we replicated categorical perception of /r/ and /l/ in Americans and its absence in native Japanese, whose language lacks that contrast; Japanese with extensive conversational English experience (experienced), however, showed greater categoricity [MacKain, Best, and Strange, Applied Psycholinguistics (in press)]. We retested 18 of the same subjects (nine Americans, nine Japanese) on perception of a prevocalic /w/-/j/ continuum; these glides contrast phonemically in both languages. The phonetic and acoustic characteristics of /w/-/j/ place them between prototypical vowels and consonants, suggesting perception should be less categorical than for a clearer consonantal contrast such as /r/-/l/. Results upheld predictions derived from the language differences: Japanese and Americans showed equally categorical /w/-/j/ perception, but the Japanese were less categorical on /r/-/l/ than on /w/-/j/. Experienced Japanese showed this pattern also, but perceived /r/-/l/ more categorically than the less experienced subgroup. Although for Americans, /w/-/j/ identifications appeared somewhat more continuous than for /r/-/l/, the difference was nonsignificant. Prevocalic semi-vowels may thus be perceived as categorically as natively contrasting liquids. [Supported by NINCDS, NICHD, and NIH.] [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
