Limits on the limitations of context-conditioned effects in the perception of [b] and [w].
We investigated the conditions under which the [b]-[w] contrast is processed in a context-dependent manner, specifically in relation to syllable duration. In an earlier paper, Miller and Liberman (1979) demonstrated that when listeners use transition duration to differentiate [b] from [w], they treat it in relation to the duration of the syllable: As syllables from a [ba]-[wa] series varying in transition duration become longer, so, too, does the transition duration at the [b]-[w] perceptual boundary. In a subsequent paper, Shinn, Blumstein, and Jongman (1985) questioned the generality of this finding by showing that the effect of syllable duration is eliminated for [ba]-[wa] stimuli that are less schematic than those used by Miller and Liberman. In the present investigation, we demonstrated that when these "more natural" stimuli are presented in a multi-talker babble noise instead of in quiet (as was done by Shinn et al.), the syllable-duration effect emerges. Our findings suggest that the syllable-duration effect in particular, and context effects in general, may play a more important role in speech perception than Shinn et al. suggested.
Miller
J L
JL
Department of Psychology, Northeastern University, Boston, MA 02115.
Wayland
S C
SC
D000328:Adult; D001288:Attention; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010700:Phonetics; D011571:Psychoacoustics; D012660:Semantics; D013067:Speech Perception