Abstract
In a variety of experimental paradigms speakers do not treat all sub-syllabic sequences equally. In languages like English, participants tend to group vowels and codas together to the exclusion of onsets (i.e., /bet/=/b/-/et/). Three possible accounts of these patterns are examined. A hierarchical account attributes these results to the presence of categorical sub-syllabic divisions (e.g., onset /b/ vs. rime /et/). In contrast, a non-hierarchical account attributes these findings to the strength with which particular consonants and vowels co-occur (e.g., the relative frequency of /be/ vs. /et/). A third emergentist alternative is articulated, where speakers' knowledge is sensitive not just to the frequency with which particular segments co-occur but also to the general patterns of association within a language. These accounts are contrasted by examining sub-syllabic patterns in two languages: Korean and English. A statistical study shows distinctions in the general patterns of sub-syllabic associations in Korean and English. Consistent with the emergentist perspective, results of short-term memory experiments reveal that Korean and English speakers are sensitive not only to these general patterns but also to the strength with which particular segment sequences are associated. The implications of these results for theories of sub-syllabic patterns in languages are discussed.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 155-168 |
Number of pages | 14 |
Journal | Journal of Memory and Language |
Volume | 59 |
Issue number | 2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Aug 2008 |
Funding
This research was supported in part by a Graduate Research Grant to the first author from the Northwestern University Graduate School. Portions of this work were presented at the 34th annual meeting of the Linguistic Association of the Southwest (October, 2005), the 42nd annual meeting of the Chicago Linguistic Society (April, 2006), and the 15th annual meeting of the European Society of Cognitive Psychology (August, 2007) and submitted as part of the author’s Doctoral dissertation (Northwestern University, 2006). The authors thank the members of the first author’s dissertation committee (Ann Bradlow and Janet Pierrehumbert) for their invaluable advice and support during this project as well as Kristin Van Engen and Midam Kim for assistance in transcription of the production data.
Keywords
- Phonotactic probability
- Short-term memory tests
- Sub-syllabic constituents
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Neuropsychology and Physiological Psychology
- Language and Linguistics
- Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
- Linguistics and Language
- Artificial Intelligence