Perceptual Learning in Speech

Synonyms

Recalibration; Retuning

Definition

Perceptual learning in speech describes a change in the mapping from acoustic cues in the speech signal to abstract linguistic representations. Learning leads to a lasting benefit to the listener by improving speech comprehension. The change can occur as a response to a specific feature (such as a talker- or accent idiosyncrasy) or to a global degradation of the signal (such as in synthesized or compressed speech). In perceptual learning, a top-down process is involved in causing the change, whereas purely bottom-up, signal-driven phenomena are considered to be adaptation.

Theoretical Background

Perceptual learning provides listeners with a mechanism for coping with an immense amount of variability in the speech signal. The realization of acoustic cues that are associated with particular speech sounds vary considerably from talker to talker, even in the most favorable listening conditions, because of differences in the anatomy of the vocal...