Similarity neighborhoods of spoken two syllable words: Retroactive effects on multiple activation

Abstract

This research examined the recognition of two-syllable spoken words and the means by which the auditory word recognition system deals with ambiguous stimulus information. The perceptual identification of two-syllable words comprised of two monosyllabic words (spondees) was examined. Individual syllables within a spundee were characterized as either “easy” or “hard” depending on the neighborhood characteristics of the syllable. An “easy” syllable was defined as a high-frequency word in a sparse neighborhood of low-frequency words, whereas a “hard” syllable was a low-frequency word in a high-density, high-frequency neighborhood. Neighborhood structure was found to have a strong effect on identification. In particular, identification performance for spondees with a hard—easy syllable pattern was higher than for spondees with an easy-hard syllable pattern, indicating a primarily retroactive pattern of influence in spoken word recognition. These results strongly suggest that spoken word recognition involves multiple activation and delayed commitment, thus ensuring accurate and efficient recognition.