Discrimination of speech by nonhuman animals: Basic auditory sensitivities conducive to the perception of speech-sound categories
Abstract
Chinchillas (Chinchilla laniger) were tested in a same–different task to determine the location of greatest sensitivity along a continuum of voice-onset-time (VOT). The procedure used was an up–down staircase technique which allowed the determination of the just-noticeable-difference in VOT (Δ VOT) for VOT’s on a continuum ranging from [dα] to [tα]. Results demonstrated that the animals were most sensitive to change (i.e., produced the smallest Δ VOT values) in the region of the phonetic boundary dividing voiceless-unaspirated and voiceless-aspirated sounds, in good agreement with the boundary value previously obtained in an identification task with this same species [Kuhl and Miller, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 63, 905 (1978)]. The results support the notion that the mammalian auditory system provided a selective pressure on the choice of acoustic cues to represent the phonetic oppositions employed by the world’s languages. The data are discussed in terms of the original definition of categorical perception and current psychoacoustic explanations of the peak in sensitivity for two-component stimuli varying in onset time.
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Monkeys show peaks in sensitivity that coincide with the phonetic boundaries used by languages.
“In tests of discrimination, monkeys showed peaks in sensitivity that coincided with the phonetic boundaries used by languages (20–22) (Fig. 4).”
From A new view of language acquisition (2000) · cites this paper as [20]
Previous research demonstrated many commonalities between young infants and animals in tests of speech perception, particularly those involving categorical perception.
“This difference is of interest in light of previous research demonstrating many commonalities between young infants and animals in tests of speech perception, particularly those involving categorical perception (Kuhl, 1981;Kuhl & Miller, 1975, 1978;Kuhl & Padden, 1982, 1983;Morse & Snowdon, 1975;Waters & Wilson, 1976).”
From Human adults and human infants show a “perceptual magnet effect” for the prototypes of speech categories, monkeys do not (1991) · cites this paper as Kuhl, 1981
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Ramus, F. (1999) · HAL · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Neural Response Selectivity to Natural Sounds in the Bat Midbrain
Salles, A., Park, S., Sundar, H., Macías, S., Elhilali, M., & Moss, C. F. (2020) · Neuroscience · doi:10.1016/j.neuroscience.2019.11.047 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
“…et al., 2008; Schneider and ed in Helekar (2013); Comins and Woolley, 2010; review Genter, 2014); it has been shown that small acoustic differences in temporal features can translate to large perceptual differences (Pisoni, 1977; Kuhl and Miller, 1978; Burns and Ward, 1978; Kuhl 1981; Kuhl, 1983).”
BackgroundElectrophysiological correlates of categorical speech perception for voicing contrasts in dogs
Adams, C. L., Molfese, D. L., & Betz, J. C. (1987) · Developmental Neuropsychology · doi:10.1080/87565648709540375 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
Discrimination of Musical Stimuli by Rats ( Rattus norvegicus )
Poli, M., & Previde, E. P. (2012) · International Journal of Comparative Psychology · doi:10.46867/c42p4j · Cited by 19 · see citing works
Vocal Interactivity in-and-between Humans, Animals, and Robots
Moore, R. K., Marxer, R., & Thill, S. (2016) · Frontiers in Robotics and AI · doi:10.3389/frobt.2016.00061 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
“Also Kuhl (1981) conducted listening tests on chinchillas in order to determine their capacity for discriminating speech and to provide support for the existence of a relation between the mammalian auditory system and the evolution of diferent languages.”
BackgroundLimits on phonetic integration in duplex perception
Whalen, D. H., & Liberman, A. M. (1996) · Perception & Psychophysics · doi:10.3758/bf03205488 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
Impacts of acoustic‐phonetic variability on perceptual development for spoken language: A review
Quam, C., & Creel, S. C. (2021) · Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews Cognitive Science · doi:10.1002/wcs.1558 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
Ghosh, P., Goldstein, L. M., & Narayanan, S. S. (2011) · The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · doi:10.1121/1.3573987 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
Synthesis and modification of the whistles of the bottlenose dolphin,Tursiops truncatus
Buck, J. R., Morgenbesser, H. B., & Tyack, P. L. (2000) · The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · doi:10.1121/1.429474 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
- Authors
- Kuhl, P. K.
- Affiliations
- University of Washington (US)
- Corresponding author
- Kuhl, Patricia K.
- ORCID
- Kuhl, Patricia K.
- Venue
- The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
- Publisher
- Acoustical Society of America (ASA)
- Published
- 1981-08-01
- Volume
- 70
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 340-349
- ISSN
- 0001-4966 (ISSN-L)
- 1520-8524
- OpenAlex
- W2031282998
- Cited by
- 188
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2025: 1 · 2024: 1 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 4 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 6.92
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Phonetics and Phonology Research
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Music Perception
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Developmental Biology › Animal Vocal Communication and Behavior
- Keywords
- speech perception, chinchilla, voice onset time, just noticeable difference, phonetic boundaries, auditory sensitivity, categorical perception, acoustic cues, mammalian auditory system, psychoacoustics
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