On the relationship between general auditory perception and speech perception : an examination of pitch and lexical tone perception in 4- to 6-year-old children

Abstract

Theoretical models and substantial research have proposed that general auditory perception is the developmental foundation of speech perception. Nonetheless, controversies exist regarding the effectiveness of general auditory training on speech perception and language development. This research examines the relationship between general auditory perception and speech perception via the examination of pitch and lexical tone perception in children. Forty-eight typically-developing 4- to 6-year-old Cantonese-speaking children and ten hearing-impaired children in the same age range were tested on pitch discrimination, lexical tone discrimination and lexical tone identification. Findings revealed that accurate lexical tone discrimination and identification did not necessarily entail accurate discrimination of non-linguistic stimuli that followed the pitch levels and pitch shapes of lexical tones. Despite a strong correlation between pitch discrimination and tone discrimination, pitch discrimination ability did not precede tone discrimination in the developmental trajectory. Contradicting to the theoretical models, findings in the current study suggest that general auditory perception and speech perception are not causally or hierarchically related. Comparable non-linguistic auditory perceptual ability is not necessary for accurate speech perception and language learning. Therefore, the results cast doubts on the use of non-linguistic auditory perceptual training to improve children’s speech, language and literacy abilities.