Effects of Tonal Language Experience on Perception of Mandarin Tones by Chinese-as-a-Second-Language Speakers

LI Li; LI Ya-xian; KANG Yu; WANG Li

Journal of South China normal University (Social Science Edition) > 2020 > (1): 83-91.

LI Li, LI Ya-xian, KANG Yu, WANG Li. Effects of Tonal Language Experience on Perception of Mandarin Tones by Chinese-as-a-Second-Language Speakers[J]. Journal of South China normal University (Social Science Edition), 2020, (1): 83-91.

Citation:

PDF (2103 KB)

Effects of Tonal Language Experience on Perception of Mandarin Tones by Chinese-as-a-Second-Language Speakers

More Information

Received Date: November 18, 2019
Available Online: March 21, 2021

Graphical Abstract

Abstract

Abstract

The present study took three experiments to explore the effects of tonal language experience on perception of Mandarin tones by Chinese-as-a-second-language speakers. The subjects contained some native Thai speakers who have tonal language experience and some native Russian speakers who have no tonal language experience. In experiment 1 and experiment 2, the tone perception task was used to investigate the perception of Mandarin tones by subjects with primary and intermediate Chinese proficiency respectively. In experiment 3, the tone perception assimilation mode of the native Thai speakers with primary and intermediate Chinese proficiency was investigated. Combining the results of the three experiments, it was found that the tonal language experience had played a promoting role in the tonal perception of Chinese as a second language, which was realized by the native tonal speakers' perceptual assimilation mechanism of mandarin tones. In addition, the perception and assimilation of mandarin tones by Chinese-as-a-second-language speakers were not significantly regulated by their Chinese proficiency, whereas the second language learners' perception of mandarin tones was restricted by the characteristics of mandarin tones themselves.
- tonal language experiences,
- Chinese-as-a-second-language speaks,
- tone perception,
- perceptual assimilation

FullText(HTML)

References (23)

References

[1]	王韫佳, 李美京. 韩语母语者对普通话阳平和上声的知觉[J]. 语言教学与研究,2011(1):17-25. http://d.old.wanfangdata.com.cn/Periodical/yyjxyyj201101004
[2]	张林军. 美国留学生汉语声调的音位和声学信息加工[J]. 世界汉语教学,2011(2):268-275. http://www.wanfangdata.com.cn/details/detail.do?_type=perio&id=sjhyjx201102011
[3]	吴倩, 王韫佳. 声调的范畴知觉及其神经机制[J]. 心理科学进展,2018(1):62-71. http://d.old.wanfangdata.com.cn/Periodical/xlxdt201801006
[4]	ZHANG L, XI J, WU H, et al. Electrophysiological evidence of categorical perception of Chinese lexical tones in attentive condition[J]. Neuroreport, 2012, 23(1): 35-39. doi: 10.1097/WNR.0b013e32834e4842
[5]	YU K, ZHOU Y, LI L, et al. The interaction between phonological information and pitch type at pre-attentive stage: an ERP study of lexical tones[J]. Language, cognition and neuroscience, 2017,32(9):1164-1175. doi: 10.1080/23273798.2017.1310909
[6]	BEST C T, TYLER M D. Nonnative and second-language speech perception: commonalities and complementarities[M]//BOHN O S, MUNRO M J. Language experience in second language speech learning: in honor of James Emil Flege. Amsterdam: Benjamin, 2007:13-34.
[7]	WANG X. Perception of L2 tones: L1 lexical tone experience may not help[C]// Proceedings of Speech Prosody 2006, May 2-5, 2006, Dresden, Germany. Dresden: Wiley-Blackwell,2006 :240.
[8]	WANG X. Perception of Mandarin tones: the effect of L1 background and training[J]. The modern language journal, 2013, 97(1): 144-160. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-4781.2013.01386.x
[9]	LI X, TO C K S, NG M L. Effects of L1 tone on perception of L2 tone-a study of Mandarin tone learning by native Cantonese children[J]. Bilingualism: language and cognition, 2016(1):1-12.
[10]	QIN Z, MOK P. Discrimination of Cantonese tones by Mandarin, English and French speakers[J]. International congress of phonetic Sciences, 2011: 1654-1657.
[11]	LI Y. English and Thai speakers’ perception of Mandarin tones[J]. English language teaching, 2016, 9(1): 122-132. http://d.old.wanfangdata.com.cn/OAPaper/oai_doaj-articles_f2566ec578d0c09d0acb9c70acad6299
[12]	CHANG S, YAO Y, HUANG B H. Effects of linguistic experience on the perception of high-variability non-native tones[J]. The journal of the acoustical society of America, 2017, 141(2): 120-126. doi: 10.1121/1.4976037
[13]	HAO Y. Second language acquisition of Mandarin Chinese tones by tonal and non-tonal language speakers[J]. Journal of phonetics, 2012, 40(2): 269-279. doi: 10.1016/j.wocn.2011.11.001
[14]	TSUKADA K, HUI L R, XU N. The perception of Mandarin lexical tones by listeners from different linguistic backgrounds[J]. Chinese as a second language research, 2016, 4(2): 141-161.
[15]	TSUKADA K, KONDO M, SUNAOKA K. The perception of Mandarin lexical tones by native Japanese adult listeners with and without Mandarin learning experience[J]. Journal of second language pronunciation, 2016, 2(2): 225-252. doi: 10.1075/jslp.2.2.05tsu
[16]	JONGMAN A, WANG Y, SERENO J A. Acoustic and perceptual evaluation of Mandarin tone productions before and after perceptual training[J]. Journal of the acoustical society of America, 2003, 113(2):1033-1043. doi: 10.1121/1.1531176
[17]	SO C K. The effect of L1 prosodic backgrounds of Cantonese and Japanese speakers on the perception of Mandarin Tones after training[J]. Journal of the acoustical society of America, 2005, 117(4): 2427-2427.
[18]	ZOU T, CHEN Y, CASPERS J. The developmental trajectories of attention distribution and segment-tone integration in Dutch learners of Mandarin tones[J]. Bilingualism: language and Cognition, 2016(1):1-13. http://www.wanfangdata.com.cn/details/detail.do?_type=perio&id=S1366728916000791
[19]	张林军.母语经验对留学生汉语声调范畴化知觉的影响[J]. 华文教学与研究,2010(2):15-20. doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1674-8174.2010.02.004
[20]	吴燕萍.基于听辨实验的留学生汉语声调感知研究[J]. 现代语文(语言研究),2013(08):108-110. http://d.old.wanfangdata.com.cn/Periodical/xdyw-llyj201308039
[21]	PELZL E, LAU E F, GUO T, et al. Advanced second language learners’ perception of lexical tone contrasts[J]. Studies in second language acquisition, 2018, 41(1):1-28. http://www.wanfangdata.com.cn/details/detail.do?_type=perio&id=S0272263117000444
[22]	ZHAO T C, KUHL P K. Effect of musical experience on learning lexical tone categories[J]. Journal of the acoustical society of America, 2015, 137(3): 1452-1463. doi: 10.1121/1.4913457
[23]	LI P, ZHANG F, TSAI E, et al. Language history questionnaire (LHQ 2.0): a new dynamic web-based research tool[J]. Bilingualism: language and cognition, 2014, 17(3): 673-680. doi: 10.1017/S1366728913000606

Cited By

Get Citation

PDF

XML

Article views (2558) PDF downloads (123)

Turn off MathJax

Article Contents

Abstract

References

Effects of Tonal Language Experience on Perception of Mandarin Tones by Chinese-as-a-Second-Language Speakers

Abstract

References

Catalog

Export File

Citation

Format

Content