Conceptually-cued perceptual categorization in adult L2 learners

Abstract

Previous studies attest that early bilinguals can modify their perceptual identification according to the fine-grained phonetic detail of the language they believe they are hearing. Following Gonzales, Byers-Heinlein, and Lotto (2019), we replicate the double phonemic boundary effect in late learners (LBs) using conceptual-based cueing. We administered a forced choice identification task to 169 native English adult learners of Spanish in two sessions. In both sessions participants identified the same /b/-/p/ voicing continuum, but language context was cued conceptually via the instructions. The data were analyzed using Bayesian multilevel regression. Learners categorized the continuum in a similar manner when they believed they were hearing English. However, when they believed they were hearing Spanish, ‘voiceless’ responses increased as a function of L2 proficiency. This research demonstrates the double phonemic boundary effect can be conceptually cued in LBs and supports accounts positing selective activation of independent perception grammars in L2 learning.

Interlingual Interactions Elicit Performance Mismatches Not “Compromise” Categories in Early Bilinguals: Evidence from Meta-Analysis and Coronal Stops

“…In addition, bilingual language modes (Grosjean 2001) represent another factor that must be considered. Bilingual production/perception can vary (1) according to the mode (unilingual, bilingual) in which it is tested (e.g., Antoniou et al 2010;Gonzales and Lotto 2013), and (2) as a function of the expectations the bilingual has about the communicative context (e.g., Gonzales et al 2019;Lozano-Argüelles et al 2020;Yazawa et al 2019). These facts underscore the need to take special care when designing experiments so as to avoid confounds related to language modes.…”

Interlingual interactions elicit performance mismatches not “compromise” categories in early bilinguals: Evidence from meta-analysis and coronal stops

“…In addition, bilingual language modes (Grosjean, 2001) represent another factor that must be considered. Bilingual production/perception can vary (1) according to the mode (unilingual, bilingual) in which it is tested (e.g., Antoniou et al, 2010;Gonzales & Lotto, 2013), and (2) as a function of the expectations the bilingual has about the communicative context (e.g., Gonzales, Byers-Heinlein, & Lotto, 2019;Lozano-Argüelles et al, 2020;Yazawa, Whang, Kondo, & Escudero, 2019). These facts underscore the need to take special care when designing experiments so as to avoid confounds related to language modes.…”