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The perceptual integrity of syllabic onsets.
Authors:
Cutler, A., Butterfield, S. & Williams, J.N.
Reference:
Journal of Memory and Language, 26, 406-418.
Year of publication:
1987
CBU number:
2068
Abstract:
Detection time for word-initial phonemes is faster when the phoneme is followed by a vowel (as in band) than when the phoneme is part of a cluster (as in brand or bland). We investigated this effect as a function of the model which subjects were given for the target phoneme (e.g. "/b/ as in blue"). Subjects listened for word-initial target phonemes in continuous utterances. The targets occurred in single-phoneme, /r/ cluster or /l/ cluster onsets. Each type of word produced faster responses when the target had been modelled with the same onset. No such effects were found with consonant-vowel onsets; the "matching model" effect is specific to syllabic onsets, and suggests that word-initial clusters are perceived as integral units.