Phonological memory, attention control, and musical ability: Effects of individual differences on rater judgments of second language speech

• TALIA ISAACS ^[1] ; PAVEL TROFIMOVICH ^[2]
  1. [1] McGill University

     McGill University

     Canadá

     
  2. [2] Concordia University

     Concordia University

     Canadá

     
• Localización: Applied psycholinguistics, ISSN 0142-7164, Vol. 32, Nº 1, 2011, págs. 113-140
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • This study examines how listener judgments of second language speech relate to individual differences in listeners’ phonological memory, attention control, and musical ability. Sixty native English listeners (30 music majors, 30 nonmusic majors) rated 40 nonnative speech samples for accentedness, comprehensibility, and fluency. The listeners were also assessed for phonological memory (serial recognition), attention control (trail making), and musical aptitude. Results showed that music majors assigned significantly lower scores than nonmusic majors solely for accentedness, particularly for low ability second language speakers. However, the ratings were not significantly affected by individual differences in listeners’ phonological memory and attention control, which implies that these factors do not bias listeners’ subjective judgments of speech. Implications for psycholinguistic research and for high-stakes speaking assessments are discussed.