4 - Preperceptual Images, Processing Time, and Perceptual Units in Speech Perception

Abstract

The primary recognition process represents a synthesis of the preperceptual representation of these speech sounds. This chapter focuses on the temporal course of the primary recognition or synthesis process. It presents a schematic representation of the primary recognition process in the framework of an information-processing model. This representation of the recognition process rests on certain assumptions about the structure and function of the human information-processing system: (1) the preperceptual auditory image holds information about the stimulus and this information remain there until primary recognition has occurred, and (2) a description of this stimulus information is available in long-term memory so that recognition can occur. The primary recognition process finds the best match between the preperceptual image and the description in long-term memory. Recognition of the stimulus involves a transformation of the information in the preperceptual auditory image, resulting in a synthesized percept of the stimulus. The stimulus for recognizing speech is a sound pattern that can be described by fluctuations in sound pressure over time.