Processing foreign-accented speech in a second language: Evidence from ERPs during sentence comprehension in bilinguals

• Autores: Sarah Grey, Laura C. Schubel, James M. McQueen, Janet G. van Hell
• Localización: Bilingualism: Language and cognition, ISSN 1366-7289, Vol. 22, Nº 5, 2019, págs. 912-929
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • This study examined electrophysiological correlates of sentence comprehension of native-accented and foreign-accented speech in a second language (L2), for sentences produced in a foreign accent different from that associated with the listeners' L1. Bilingual speaker-listeners process different accents in their L2 conversations, but the effects on real-time L2 sentence comprehension are unknown. Dutch–English bilinguals listened to native American-English accented sentences and foreign (and for them unfamiliarly-accented) Chinese-English accented sentences while EEG was recorded. Behavioral sentence comprehension was highly accurate for both native-accented and foreign-accented sentences. ERPs showed different patterns for L2 grammar and semantic processing of native- and foreign-accented speech. For grammar, only native-accented speech elicited an Nref. For semantics, both native- and foreign-accented speech elicited an N400 effect, but with a delayed onset across both accent conditions. These findings suggest that the way listeners comprehend native- and foreign-accented sentences in their L2 depends on their familiarity with the accent.