Abstract
Both the timing (i.e., when) and amount (i.e., how much) of language exposure affect language-learning outcomes. We compared speech recognition accuracy across three listener groups for whom the order (first versus second) and dominance (dominant versus non-dominant) of two languages, English and Spanish, varied: one group of Spanish heritage speakers (SHS; L2-English dominant; L1-Spanish non-dominant) and two groups of late onset L2 learners (L1-dominant English/Spanish learners and L1-dominant Spanish/English learners). Sentence-final word recognition accuracy in both English and Spanish was assessed across three “easy” versus “difficult” listening conditions: (1) signal-to-noise ratio (SNR; +5 dB SNR versus 0 dB SNR), (2) sentence predictability (high versus low sentence predictability), and (3) speech style (clear versus plain speech style). Overall, SHS English recognition accuracy was equivalent to that of the L1-dominant English Spanish learners, whereas SHS Spanish recognition accuracy was substantially lower than that of the L1-dominant Spanish English learners. Moreover, while SHS benefitted in both languages from the “easy” listening conditions, they were more adversely affected by (i.e., they recognized fewer words) the presence of higher noise and lower predictability in their non-dominant L1 Spanish compared to their dominant L2 English. These results identify both a benefit and limit on the influence of early exposure. Specifically, the L2-dominant heritage speakers displayed L1-like speech recognition in their dominant-L2, as well as generally better recognition in their non-dominant L1 than late onset L2 learners. Yet, subtle recognition accuracy differences between SHS and L1-dominant listeners emerged under relatively difficult communicative conditions.
Highlights
In many cases, a talker’s first language (L1) is their dominant language
As the interactions between language, listener group, and each signal manipulation are the critical comparisons for this study, these three three-way interactions were included in both models for assessment
The results showed that Spanish Heritage Speakers (SHS) were more accurate than L1-English/Spanish learners (L1-E/SL) at final keyword recognition in Spanish under adverse listening conditions, establishing the benefit of early exposure for speech recognition in noise
Summary
In many immigrant communities (including, but not limited to the USA), there is a growing number of speakers for whom their L1 is not their dominant language (Brecht and Ingold 2002) For this group, the L1 is typically spoken at home, while the L2 is generally the dominant language of the society in which the talkers live. In the United States, there is a large Hispanic population (Ramirez and de la Cruz 1997) due to immigration from Mexico and Latin America Within these immigrant families, children often speak Spanish at home with their parents and grandparents who have not acquired English, but must use English at school, where it is the medium of instruction and in society at large. For these children, whom we refer to as Spanish Heritage Speakers
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