Suppose researchers ask participants to identify syllables from a set of stimuli that were created such that they vary systematically by equal steps of difference in voice onset time. How well will the participants identify stimuli?
A) Syllables are identified correctly only if they occur frequently in the language.
B) Subjects will be unable to perceive syllables near the VOT boundary between phonemes.
C) On either side of the phoneme boundary in VOT, subjects will consistently hear each syllable as a good example of one or the other phoneme.
D) On either side of the phoneme boundary in VOT, subjects will guess the syllable at close to a chance level.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Participants will consistently hear each syllable as a good example of one or the other phoneme on either side of the phoneme boundary in VOT. This is known as categorical perception, where listeners perceive sounds as belonging to distinct categories rather than as a continuous range of sounds. This phenomenon has been widely studied and replicated for various phonetic continua.

Suppose Researchers Ask Participants to Identify Syllables from a Set