Research interests

The research interests of our lab lie in human speech processing in both production and perception. There are three main research lines:

1. Dialectal variation in speech processing
This line of research intends to investigate the distribution of dialectal variation and its underlying cause in Taiwan Mandarin. The focus of interest includes both production and perception. We are particularly interested in how knowledge of one dialect/language can influence one's production and perception of another dialect/language. Recent projects include (1) tonal variation of Taiwan, (2) variation in retroflex realization in Taiwan, and (3) variation in final nasal merger in Taiwan.

2. Prosody and phonetic cues in spontaneous speech processing
This line of study focuses on how prosody and phonetic cues pattern with discourse structures in spontaneous speech, and how listeners take advantage of these cues in online speech processing. We are particularly interested in linguistic universality and uniqueness. Recent research projects include (1) cross-linguistically equivalent spontaneous speech corpus construction, and (2) production and perception of discourse boundary cues in spontaneous monologues.

3. L2 sound acquisition
This line of study focuses on L2 sound acquisition. We are particularly interested in how age of onset and proficiency influence learners' performance in speech production and perception. Recent research projects include (1) the effect of training on L2 sound perception, and (2) pitch-accent placement in L2 prosody.