creators_name: Pallier, C. creators_name: Bosch, L. creators_name: Sebastian-Gallés, N. type: journalp datestamp: 1998-10-15 lastmod: 2011-03-11 08:54:15 metadata_visibility: show title: A limit on behavioral plasticity in speech perception. ispublished: pub subjects: ling-phono subjects: neuro-ling subjects: percep-cog-psy subjects: psy-ling subjects: psy-phys full_text_status: public keywords: psycholinguistics, speech perception, bilingualism, critical period, phonetics, phonology, learnability, plasticity, phonemes, Catalan, Spanish, perception. abstract: It is well attested that we perceive speech through the filter of our native language: a classic example is that of Japanese listeners who cannot discriminate between the American /l/ and /r/ and identify both as their own /r/ phoneme (Goto, 1971). Studies in the laboratory have shown, however, that perception of non-native speech sounds can be learned through training (Lively, Pisoni, Yamada, & Tohkura, 1994). This is consistent with neurophysiological evidence showing considerable experience-dependent plasticity in the brain at the first levels of sensory processing (Edeline & Weinberger, 1993; Kraus, et al., 1995; Merzenich & Sameshima, 1993; Weinberger, 1993). Outside of the laboratory, however, the situation seems to differ: we here report a study involving Spanish-Catalan bilingual subjects who have had the best opportunities to learn a new contrast but did not do it. Our study demonstrates a striking lack of behavioral plasticity: early and extensive exposure to a second language is not sufficient to attain the ultimate phonological competence of native speakers. date: 1997-09 date_type: published publication: Cognition volume: 64 number: 3 pagerange: 9-17 refereed: TRUE citation: Pallier, C. and Bosch, L. and Sebastian-Gallés, N. (1997) A limit on behavioral plasticity in speech perception. [Journal (Paginated)] document_url: http://cogprints.org/743/1/plast.ps document_url: http://cogprints.org/743/5/plast.pdf