Speech & Language Event: Dr Drew Weatherhead

Speech & Language Research Program Event (Room 3.G.55 - Building 3)

Dr Drew Weatherhead - University of British Columbia

Title: Read my lips: Visual speech influences lexical access in infants

Abstract: Although we typically think of speech as an acoustic signal, the speech signal is richly multisensory, and can be perceived through both the ears and the eyes. The observation of mouth movements during speech provides information about temporal and phonetic properties of the acoustic signal, which can be used by listeners to decode the speech signal more reliably. The benefits of visual speech information go well beyond simply reinforcing the acoustic signal. In fact, for adult listeners, visual information affects interpretation of more than just speech sounds – it also affects lexical access. Yet, little is known about the development of how visual input becomes part of, or is accessible from, lexical representations.  In this presentation, I discuss three studies investigating the role of visual speech information on infants’ lexical representations.  I will address whether visual speech information 1) contributes to lexical access (Weatherhead & White, 2017), 2) affects the future processing of auditory speech (Weatherhead & White, in prep), and 3) actively contributes to the formation of new lexical representations (Weatherhead, Nacar-Garcia, Arredondo, & Werker, in prep).

MARCS staff and students are reminded that all meetings and workshops have an important role in building and maintaining the sense of community which is central to the success of MARCS as a cooperative and energetic research institute.  Your attendance is both welcomed and expected.

The zoom ID is: 627 146 998. Link to zoom https://uws.zoom.us/j/627146998