1,720,992 research outputs found
The acquisition of Korean pluralizer --tul
No full textThis thesis presents an experiment designed to test children's knowledge of the Korean pluralizer -tul. Acquisition of this pluralizer was investigated in two ways: as an Intrinsic Plural Marker (IPM) attached to nominals and as an Extrinsic Plural Marker (EPM) attached to non-nominals. First of all, the results show that eight-year-olds associated the IPM -tul as plural. Seven- and eight-year-olds, however, were more confident with a singular interpretation than with a plural interpretation. Such behavior is due to the optionality of -tul. If children are exposed to inconsistent input, and the interpretation is ambiguous, the acquisition can be delayed. Second, the results show that the IPM -tul plays the same role in subject and in indirect object. Eight-year-olds treated the IPM -tul equally, regardless of the place that it is attached to. Third, the results with adults' responses suggest that the EPM -tul is associated to a plural subject interpretation. Seven- and eight-year-olds seemed that they did not know the interpretation of the EPM. Fourth, the results show that the EPM is harder for seven- and eight-year-olds to acquire than the IPM. The IPM is attached more locally than the EPM in terms of its semantic effect. Lastly, the results clearly show that there were age differences in acquisition of the pluralizer -tul. Although eight-year-olds were not adult-like, they performed a lot better than seven-year-olds did since they were more likely to be exposed to the plural interpretations.Thesis (M.A.)--Michigan State University, Linguistics, 2011Includes bibliographical references (pages 99-102
The generalizable nature of lexical retuning
Full text link"Auditory speech identification has been observed to be influenced by both lexical and visual information. Perceptual learning experiments have used two unique paradigms to test how each of these information sources affects the identification of ambiguous stimuli. In both cases, listeners are more likely to identify ambiguous stimuli in the direction of the disambiguating information they receive. It has been further argued that the resulting effects are the same and can be traced back to the same general speech perception mechanism. Despite this claim, there have been conflicting results in regards to generalization. Lexically induced perceptual learning has been observed to generalize to new contexts, while visually induced perceptual learning has been observed to be context dependent. While the difference in these observed results could be explained by the information source (lexical vs. visual), there are also crucial differences in the experimental designs that may offer a better account. The training stimuli set for lexically induced perceptual learning experiments includes many unique tokens that are presented one time each. For visually induced perceptual learning experiments, the training set includes just one unique token presented multiple times. Listeners therefore only receive type variation in the lexically induced perceptual learning experiments. Crucially, type variation has been observed to be necessary for learning linguistic patterns and therefore may explain the differences in observed results between the two paradigms. This current study uses three new experiments to study the generalizable nature of lexically induced perceptual learning. The results corroborate the idea that generalization of the effect to new contexts is possible in lexically induced perceptual learning experiments when listeners are trained with type variation, but when type variation is eliminated the ability to generalize the effect to new contexts is no longer observed."--Page ii.Thesis (M.A.)--Michigan State University. Linguistics, 2019Includes bibliographical references (pages 49-52
Understanding Acceptability Judgements : Grammatical Knowledge vs. Lexical Search
Full text linkIn this thesis, the source of gradience in acceptability judgments is discussed (Scholes 1966) and a set of experiments is performed which attempt to attribute gradience more concretely to either phonotactic knowledge or lexical knowledge. Two phonotactic acceptability judgment tasks are implemented to better understand whether reaction time can lessen the influence of lexical information on phonotactic acceptability judgments. Following results from Fox (1984) which show weaker influence from lexical information when less response time is allowed, I hypothesize that phonotactic information should be immediately accessible for participants, but that a lexical search takes more time to perform. In turn, an acceptability judgment task which allots less response time to participants should result in less influence from lexical information in their responses. By comparing the resulting participant judgments to gradient and categorical language models, I show that lexical access is still present at early reaction times, meaning reaction time was not useful in removing the influence of lexical information from phonotactic acceptability judgments in this set of experiments. This prompts a discussion of other possible models which can feasibly be used to understand these judgments and the source of their gradience.Thesis (M.A.)--Michigan State University. Linguistics - Master of Arts, 2021Includes bibliographical reference
Regional variation in Chicano English : incipient dialect formation among L1 and L2 speakers in Benton Harbor, MI
Full text linkThis ethnographic investigation of the vowel system of Mexican Americans in Southwest Michigan addresses several holes in the literature, including the lack of research on Mexican Americans outside in the American South and the interaction of their dialect with regional variation. Sociolinguistics has a long tradition of exploring both the language use of political minorities and the regional variation of those who considered among the mainstream population, but it often ignores interaction between the two. This work addresses such interaction among Mexican Americans in Benton Harbor, Michigan, a town which is 95% African American, in terms of both their production and their perception of vowels. This population, comprised mostly of former migrant workers, is only beginning to form a community, but linguistic patterns similar to Roeder's (2006) study of an established community of Mexican Americans in Lansing, MI are already emerging. Contrary to Labov's (1994) claims that groups like Latinos do not participate in regional variation, the vocalic patterns of Mexican Americans in Benton Harbor and Lansing demonstrate accommodation to the Northern Cities Shift (NCS), a regional change found among whites in the Inland North. This work also addresses claims about substrate Spanish effects in the vowel system, showing several of the claims about confusion patterns might be overstated. Finally, it addresses the social situation that is conditioning the developing dialect, addressing racial tensions and patterns of movement that might contribute to these speakers' partial adoption of the NCS as opposed to other available local norms.Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Linguistics, 2010Includes bibliographical references (pages 247-260
Word segmentation for Japanese and English speakers : language-independent and language-dependent cues
Full text link"Phonotactic knowledge and experience-independent knowledge have both been argued to cue word segmentation in prior studies (e.g. Ettlinger, Finn, & Hudson Kam, 2011; McQueen, 1998). This dissertation attempts to compare the effect of two types of cues, language-independent and language-dependent knowledge, on word segmentation. The specific cues selected for each type were the Sonority Sequencing Principle (SSP) as a language-independent cue and geminates (double consonants) as a language-dependent cue. The effectiveness of the cues was determined by two groups of speakers with different language background, native Japanese and native American English speakers. The two languages were chosen particularly because they contrast in two aspects relevant to these specific cues: (1) Japanese has a simple syllable structure, no consonant clusters (except for consonant-glide sequences), while English has an extensive set of bi-consonantal clusters and limited tri-consonantal clusters. (2) Japanese has a phonemic consonant length contrast (singletons vs. geminates), while English lacks such a contrast. Details of (1) are relevant for testing the SSP, and those of (2) for testing geminates as a cue to word segmentation. The results from three artificial language learning experiments (Experiment 1, 2, and 3) consistently indicate, contrary to prior claims, that the (language-independent) SSP is not a reliable cue to segment speech strings for both language groups, regardless of the difference in syllable structure. On the other hand, knowledge about language-dependent geminates seems to be a good predictor as to how speakers segment words from a string with word-internal geminates (Experiment 4 and 5). Japanese speakers, whose language has a phonemic contrast between geminates and singleton consonants, consistently segmented the speech string so that geminates were retained within words, whereas English speakers without such a contrast in their native language tended to break up the string at geminates. Moreover, the results indicate that listeners are able to rely heavily on the transitional probability (TP) of the syllables to segment the string, primarily when the structure of the stimulus words in the target speech string is simple. From the results of this study, language-dependent knowledge seems to be more effective than language-independent knowledge in word segmentation."--Pages ii-iii.Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Linguistics, 2019Includes bibliographical references (pages 168-174
Children's acquisition of Tone 3 Sandhi in Mandarin
No full textThe purpose of the dissertation is to examine Mandarin-speaking children's acquisition of a syntax-dependent phonological rule Tone 3 Sandhi (T3S). A Tone 3 (low dipping tone) is changed to a Tone 2 (mid rising tone) when it is followed by another Tone 3. Application of T3S in fact involves a complex process. In setting up the prosodic domains within which T3S applies, syntax is partially referred to. Cyclic and non-cyclic parsing strategies are used for different syntactic contexts. A non-cyclic strategy is used for flat structures (e.g. digit sequences), a cyclic strategy for NPs, and a mixture of both strategies is necessary for sentences. There is also T3S variability because of T3S optional rules. Such variability creates ambiguity in the language input for children. Very little is known about how children acquire T3S. The current work aims to bridge the gap between T3S theories and child language acquisition. This dissertation presents five studies, targeting children's application of T3S in various contexts. Study 1 (Natural speech) examines the production data of seven children (ages 4-6) and their caretakers (five adults). There is T3S variability in children and adults. Study 2 (Flat structures) is an elicited production study participated in by 46 children (3- and 5-year-olds) and 20 adults. We tested the use of a non-cyclic strategy in sequences of two, three, and five digits. The results show that children were able to apply T3S non-cyclically in sequences of digits. However, under-application and over-application are two common error types of children. A surface pattern produced by adults was not found in children. Study 3 (NPs) is also an elicited production study, focusing on the cyclic strategy in NPs, Ninety-four children (ages 3 - 6) and 20 adults participated in this study. Children were able to apply T3S cyclically in three-syllable compound nouns and four-syllable NPs. However, when the structures become more complex, they may default to the non-cyclic strategy.Study 4 (Natural Speech Repetition) and Study 5 (Robot Talk Repetition) used repetition of sentences to test T3S application at the sentence level where an integration of cyclic and non-cyclic strategies is necessary. Twenty-one children (4- and 6-year-olds) and 11 adults participated in Study 4. Forty-three children (4- and 6-year-olds) and 14 adults participated in Study 5. Children were able to repeat the 4- and 6-syllable sentences which have T3S in Study 4 (Natural Speech Repetition). However, in Study 5 (Robot Talk Repetition) where we used identical sentences, with the removal of the T3S effect, 4-year-olds have a lot of difficulty. Six-year-olds were able to integrate cyclic and non-cyclic strategies in T3S application, but they still do not have adults' mastery of T3S. Six-year-olds have all the T3S patterns adults have, and also approximate adults in their preference of the patterns.Overall, the findings of these studies do not support early acquisition of T3S. The results indicate that although children know to change a Tone 3 to a Tone 2 when it is followed by a Tone 3, it takes time to learn how to set up the prosodic domains for T3S to apply, to develop and reach adult-like mastery of the intricacies of T3S application.Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Linguistics, 2011Includes bibliographical references (pages 332-336
The role of phonology and phonetics in the adaptation of English words into standard Chinese
Full text link"We can distinguish three approaches in the literature as to how borrowed foreign words are adapted to comply with the host language sound system: the purely perceptual approach, which claims that the adaptation occurs during perception beyond the listeners' conscious awareness, the purely phonological approach, which claims that the underlying representations of the source words are the input to the adaptation and mapped in the host language lexicon to the structurally closest native representations, and the hybrid approach, which claims that the adaptation occurs in the host language production grammar and that the host language production grammar makes direct reference to the phonetic information in the source words. This dissertation evaluates English loanwords in Standard Chinese (SC) against these three approaches, and the results generally support the hybrid approach. While the hybrid approach is supported, it falls short of explaining some of the loanword data. Two problems are pointed out and the solutions are proposed."--Page ii. (Abstract shortened by ProQuest.).Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Linguistics, 2019Includes bibliographical references (pages 198-211
More people understand Eschers than the linguist does : the causes and effects of grammatical illusions
Full text linkA grammatical illusion can be defined as a sentence that seems acceptable, but structurally, the sentence is ungrammatical. Grammatical illusions provide a challenge for linguists to understand why we do not immediately reject illusions like we do for most ungrammatical sentences. One type of illusion that has stirred several ongoing debates is the Escher Sentence. This dissertation focuses on the source of the illusory effect, or the reason why people fail to consistently reject these sentences. This dissertation explores the properties of Escher Sentences, the reason why they are illusory in nature, and what this contributes to our understanding of the parser. Six Experiments were designed to test the acceptability judgments, interpretations, and neurophysiological responses to these sentences. I conclude that Escher Sentences are recognized by the parser as ungrammatical, but because of the structure of these sentences, the parser is tricked into using a coercive operation to force Escher Sentences to have an acceptable interpretation. Escher Sentences gives us potential insight into the constraints of the parser in processing language while at the same time highlighting the parser\u2019s strategies in resolving computations that are ungrammatical.Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Linguistics, 2018Includes bibliographical references (pages 262-267
Speech processing of Hai-lu Hakka falling tones and tone sandhi
Full text linkThis dissertation investigates speech processing of Hai-lu Hakka falling tones (high, low) and tone sandhi (low-rising, high-checked) by focusing on how variations influence the perception of the contrast of falling tones and the application of tone sandhi. Some recent studies (Bent 2005; Huang 2004; Wang 1995; Zhang & Lai 2010; Zhang et al 2011) indicated that tonal contrasts may not be as distinctive as assumed previously and that tone sandhi may not be fully productive, since earlier studies tended to neglect the role variations play in tonal processing. In addition, the target language Hai-lu Hakka has been understudied, and was found to undergo language attrition in recent decades (Yeh 2011; Yeh & Lu 2013; Yeh & Lin 2015). The dissertation hopes to clarify how tonal variations affect tonal contrasts and tone sandhi application by explicating Hai-lu Hakka\u2019 tonal processing. The first experiment examines 30 Hai-lu Hakka speakers\u2019 contrast of falling tones by tonal identification and lexical recognition tasks. These tasks require participants to identify monosyllabic stimuli\u2019s tonal categories (either high-falling or low-falling) and to recognize their lexical meanings (either a high-falling word [ti53] \u2018to know\u2019 or a low-falling word [ti31] \u2018emperor\u2019). The second experiment examines 31 Hai-lu Hakka speakers\u2019 processing of two sandhi rules by tonal discrimination, tonal identification, lexical recognition, and production tasks. These tasks require participants to discriminate underlying and sandhi tones, to identify their tonal categories, to recognize their corresponding meanings, and to produce tone sandhi in disyllabic compounds. The results show that (i) various lexical and phonetic/phonological factors play a role in the tonal contrast and the sandhi processes, (ii) lexical and phonetic/phonological effects can be more or less significant in different tasks, and (iii) lexical factors exhibit a more consistent pattern across different tasks than phonetic/phonological factors. These findings indicate three general implications as follows. First, the lexical and phonetic/phonological effects indicate that the contrast of two falling tones varies with both lexical and phonetic/phonological factors, so does the application of two sandhi rules. These factors may result in tonal confusion between two falling tones and lower application rates of two sandhi rules. Second, the lexical and phonetic/phonological effects indicate that variations occur frequently and extensively across different tasks in the two experiments, which calls into question those derivational theoretical models that assume a transition from variations to invariance during speech processing. Third, the results indicate that lexical effects exhibit a more consistent pattern than phonetic/phonological effects, since phonetic/phonological effects exhibit an asymmetry between perception and production patterns. These findings suggest a more crucial role of lexical influences in tonal processing, which hence favors a lexically-based model for speech processing in general. To sum up, this dissertation has three general contributions. First, relating phonetic modifications/processes to variations and phonological modifications/processes to invariance is called into questions. Second, the findings uncover specific issues such as tonal confusion and a perception-production asymmetry in Hai-lu Hakka\u2019s tonal phonetics and phonology, supporting the crucial need to carefully examine a less-studied language like Hai-lu Hakka. Third, the findings indicate a more crucial role of lexical influences in tonal processing, suggesting that an exemplar-based processing model that argues for a non-derivational and lexically-driven account is a more reasonable approach to speech processing.Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Linguistics, 2015Includes bibliographical references (pages 310-322
Markedness in the perception of L2 English consonant clusters
No full textThe central goal of this dissertation is to explore the relative perceptibility of vowel epenthesis in English onset clusters by second language learners whose native language is averse to onset clusters. The dissertation examines how audible vowel epenthesis in different onset clusters is, whether this perceptibility varies from one cluster to another, whether an auditory bias toward anaptyxis vs. prothesis, and vice versa, in the perception of vowel epenthesis location exists, and the extent to which each of these inquiries depend on cluster type as a factor. The dissertation reports on four experiments. Experiment 1 explores Saudi Arabian (SA) listeners' perception of vowel epenthesis in tautosyllabic English onset clusters. The findings suggest that SA listeners are sensitive to the type of cluster in question when perceiving vowel epenthesis, and a hierarchy of perceptual difficulty among different onset clusters is motivated empirically as well as phonetically. Experiment 2 investigates the relationship between vowel length and non-native listeners' ability to perceive vowel epenthesis in different onset clusters. It evaluates listeners' aural sensitivity to the epenthetic vowel along a 5-step duration continuum. Results indicate that duration of the epenthetic vowel as well as type of cluster have a significant effect on listeners' ability to discriminate stimuli correctly. The interaction between duration and cluster type is hardly significant, however. Experiment 3 tests the hypothesis that the choice between perceptual anaptyxis and prothesis is cluster-determined by having listeners discriminate clusters from their anaptyctic and prothetic forms. Results, however, provide partial evidence for this claim. Experiment 4 tests the perceptual hierarchy of difficulty of Experiment 1 in production. The findings suggest that, like perception, L2 learners produce onset clusters variably as a function of cluster type, suggesting a strong link between L2 perception and production of English consonant clusters. The formal analysis of the data draws on principles of the Optimality Theory (Prince and Smolensky 1993) and P-map (Steriade 2009) in accounting for SA learners' vowel epenthesis perceptual patterns in onset clusters. Perceptual distinctiveness scales that reflect relative perceptibility of vowel epenthesis and its location asymmetry in onset clusters are projected into context-sensitive faithfulness constraints. It is argued that the ranking of the markedness constraint *COMPLEXOns relative to DEP-V/A+B, and ONSET relative to DEP-V/A_B capture zero-epenthesis and anaptyxis-prothesis asymmetries, respectively.Thesis (Ph. D.)--Michigan State University. Department of Linguistics, 2011Includes bibliographical references (pages 194-211
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