Sala Marco, Vespignani Francesco, Gastaldon Simone, Casalino Laura, Peressotti Francesca
Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialisation, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
Padova Neuroscience Center (PNC), University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
Psychophysiology. 2025 Sep;62(9):e70135. doi: 10.1111/psyp.70135.
Prediction models usually assume that highly constraining contexts allow the pre-activation of phonological information. However, the evidence for phonological prediction is mixed and controversial. In this study, we implement a paradigm that capitalizes on the phonological errors produced by L2 speakers to investigate whether specific phonological predictions are made based on speaker identity. L1 Italian speakers were asked to read sentence fragments, after which a final word was spoken by either an L1- or an L2-accented speaker. The spoken final word could be predictable or not, depending on the sentence context. The identity of the speaker (L1- vs. L2-accented) may or may not be cued by an image of the face of the speaker. Our main analysis indicated that cueing the speaker identity was associated with a larger N400 predictability effect, possibly reflecting an easier processing of predictable words due to phonological pre-activation. As visual inspection of the waveforms revealed a more complex pattern than initially anticipated, we used Temporal EFA (Exploratory Factor Analysis) to identify and disentangle the ERP components underlying the effect observed. In the L1-accent condition, predictable words elicited a posterior positivity relative to unpredictable words, possibly reflecting a P3b response, which was more pronounced when the speaker identity was cued. In the L2-accent condition, cueing the speaker identity was associated with a smaller N1 and a larger P3a response. These results suggest that phonological prediction for L1- and L2-accented speakers likely involves different cognitive processes.
预测模型通常假定，高度受限的语境能够使语音信息预先激活。然而，语音预测的证据并不一致且存在争议。在本研究中，我们采用了一种利用二语者产生的语音错误的范式，以探究是否会基于说话者身份进行特定的语音预测。以意大利语为母语的人被要求阅读句子片段，然后由带有母语或非母语口音的说话者说出最后一个单词。根据句子语境，说出的最后一个单词可能是可预测的，也可能是不可预测的。说话者的身份（母语口音与非母语口音）可能会也可能不会通过说话者面部的图像来提示。我们的主要分析表明，提示说话者身份与更大的N400可预测性效应相关，这可能反映出由于语音预先激活，对可预测单词的处理更容易。由于对波形的视觉检查揭示了比最初预期更复杂的模式，我们使用了时间探索性因素分析来识别和解析所观察到的效应背后的ERP成分。在母语口音条件下，可预测单词相对于不可预测单词引发了后部正波，这可能反映了一种P3b反应，当提示说话者身份时这种反应更为明显。在非母语口音条件下，提示说话者身份与较小的N1和较大的P3a反应相关。这些结果表明，对带有母语和非母语口音的说话者进行语音预测可能涉及不同的认知过程。
