Native and non-native talkers' mutual speech intelligibility of English focus sentences (original) (raw)
Related papers
The journal of Asia TEFL, 2020
This study investigated L2 English listeners' intelligibility and comprehensibility ratings of L2 English recordings of L1 Korean speakers' speech. Specifically, it considered which segmentals and features resulting from Korean phonotactics cause a breakdown in Korean speakers' L2 English intelligibility and comprehensibility for Mandarin L1-background L2 English speakers. As Korean speakers use English as a lingua franca primarily with their L1 Mandarin speaking neighbours, recordings of scripted and unscripted speech of Korean university students were sent to L1 Mandarin raters in mainland China and Taiwan, who rated utterances for intelligibility and comprehensibility. Findings showed that the most frequently mistranscribed features were epenthesis (inclusion of extra vowels to separate clustered consonants), substitution of nasals for plosives between vowels and sonorant consonants, and the consonant-vowel combination [wʊ]. Findings also suggest that less problematic features, such as [əʊ], /r/, and the distinction between [ʊ] and [u], are at times aided by similar realisations by L2 listeners.
2007
In pronunciation, segmental accuracy has been recognized as an important aspect in contributing to a non-native speaker\u27s intelligibility. Nonetheless, there has been a lack of research focusing on the role of segmental errors in understanding extended discourse. Furthermore, previous research studies on intelligibility have largely been conducted in a controlled condition where a listener\u27s cognitive process is more limited than in a real-life setting. In addition, proficiency level has not been considered as one of the factors contributing the intelligibility of non-native speech. This thesis uses a think-aloud methodology to investigate how native English speakers perceived how segmental errors contributed to reduced intelligibility of academic discourse produced by three Korean speakers with varying oral proficiency.;Five native American English listeners watched the teaching demonstrations performed by the three Korean speakers of English who had been rated as being at th...
The interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit
2003
This study investigated how native language background influences the intelligibility of speech by non-native talkers for non-native listeners from either the same or a different native language background as the talker. Native talkers of Chinese (nϭ2), Korean (nϭ2), and English (nϭ1) were recorded reading simple English sentences. Native listeners of English (nϭ21), Chinese (n ϭ21), Korean (nϭ10), and a mixed group from various native language backgrounds (nϭ12) then performed a sentence recognition task with the recordings from the five talkers. Results showed that for native English listeners, the native English talker was most intelligible. However, for non-native listeners, speech from a relatively high proficiency non-native talker from the same native language background was as intelligible as speech from a native talker, giving rise to the ''matched interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit.'' Furthermore, this interlanguage intelligibility benefit extended to the situation where the non-native talker and listeners came from different language backgrounds, giving rise to the ''mismatched interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit.'' These findings shed light on the nature of the talker-listener interaction during speech communication.
Speech Intelligibility of Korean EFL Learners : Role of Proficiency, Text Type and Text Length
The Journal of AsiaTEFL, 2016
The purpose of this study was to investigate whether and to what extent the intelligibility of Korean EFL learners' speech at the text level is affected by their English proficiency, text type, and text length. Various speech materials produced by native English speakers and two Korean EFL speaker groups (high vs. low proficiency) were presented to native English listeners and two Korean EFL listener groups, respectively, for comparison of intelligibility scores. The results showed that the listeners' overall proficiency played the most critical role in determining the level of speech intelligibility for all speaker groups, regardless of the type and length of speech materials. The speakers' proficiency level in terms of pronunciation, however, had no significant effect. As for the text type, dialogue texts were consistently more intelligible than monologues to all listener groups while the effect of text length varied depending on the text type. These results suggest that L2 learners' speech intelligibility needs to be examined within the context of natural L2 text beyond word-and sentence-level utterances in consideration of the interaction of text-related features and other learner variables. Some pedagogical implications are also discussed.
Journal of Phonetics, 2008
This study investigated how native language background influences the intelligibility of speech by non-native talkers for non-native listeners from either the same or a different native language background as the talker. Native talkers of Chinese (nϭ2), Korean (nϭ2), and English (nϭ1) were recorded reading simple English sentences. Native listeners of English (nϭ21), Chinese (n ϭ21), Korean (nϭ10), and a mixed group from various native language backgrounds (nϭ12) then performed a sentence recognition task with the recordings from the five talkers. Results showed that for native English listeners, the native English talker was most intelligible. However, for non-native listeners, speech from a relatively high proficiency non-native talker from the same native language background was as intelligible as speech from a native talker, giving rise to the ''matched interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit.'' Furthermore, this interlanguage intelligibility benefit extended to the situation where the non-native talker and listeners came from different language backgrounds, giving rise to the ''mismatched interlanguage speech intelligibility benefit.'' These findings shed light on the nature of the talker-listener interaction during speech communication.
Mutual intelligibility of american, Chinese and dutch-accented speakers of English
Interspeech 2005
This paper presents the results of a comprehensive study of the mutual intelligibility of Chinese, Dutch (both foreignlanguage learners) and American (native language) speakers of English. Intelligibility is tested at the level of the segment, word and sentence, after careful selection of representative speakers from the three language backgrounds. The results show that production and perception skills are generally correlated at all levels, that both speakers and listeners are more successful in the order Chinese < Dutch < American. Against this background, however, intelligibility is unexpectedly good when speakers and listeners share the same mother tongue.
Variables Affecting Intelligibility and Comprehensibility Speaker Factors
Recognition of incipient change in the status of English as an international language has yielded a small but growing area of research addressing NNS-NNS interaction. Issues concerning intelligibility are a key focus of this investigation, particularly as native speaker models have limited relevance to these new contexts of use. This review highlights current research from diverse areas of applied linguistics that have addressed aspects of intelligibility in both experimental and real-world settings. Current findings suggest that the processes by which understanding is achieved in ELF interaction are qualitatively different from those observed in NS-based interaction, and that this has implications for a number of research and practice areas. Following a definition of terms, the chapter surveys current research and considers its influence on current trends in English language teaching. Possible directions for further research are also considered.
The accentedness, comprehensibility, and intelligibility of Asian Englishes
This study examines the accentedness, comprehensibility, and intel-ligibility of speakers of English from China, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the United States (US) by listeners from Hong Kong, Singapore, China, and the US on two speech tasks (read vs. conversation). It also examines the effect of shared background on scores for all listeners as well as the effect of international experience for the Hong Kong and the US listeners. The study found that although accentedness and comprehensibility were positively correlated, neither variable was significantly correlated with intelligibility. The study found that shared background increased ratings of accentedness and com-prehensibility but not intelligibility scores, and that international experience also had an effect during the conversational task, in that listeners with international experience received significantly higher intelligibility scores than those without any such international experience.
Listener judgments of speaker and speech traits of varieties of Asian English
Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 2018
This study examines language attitudes towards different varieties of English through listener judgments of speaker and speech traits; in addition, the study explores the relationship of these judgments to the intelligibility, as well as the perceived accentedness and comprehensibility, of varieties of Asian English and General American English. While a great deal of research has examined the intelligibility, accentedness, and comprehensibility of English, including varieties of Asian English, no research to date has examined the relationship between language attitudes and the aforementioned dimensions of Asian English speech. That is, little is known about how listeners' judgments regarding speaker and speech traits relate to intelligibility, as well as how such judgments relate to the way in which the listener evaluates the accentedness and comprehensibility of the speaker's speech. The current study addresses these issues through an examination of listener reactions to three varieties of Asian English (Hong Kong English, Singapore English, and China English), as well as American English.