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Lexical Bias During Speech Perception Increases Under Signal Degradation but Not Cognitive Load.

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Title: Lexical Bias During Speech Perception Increases Under Signal Degradation but Not Cognitive Load.
Authors: Xie, Zilong1 zx22c@fsu.edu
Source: Journal of Speech, Language & Hearing Research. Sep2026, Vol. 69 Issue 9, p4490-4505. 16p.
Subject Terms: *Phonological awareness, *Speech perception, *Vocabulary, *Auditory perception, *Short-term memory, *Cognition, Cochlear implants, Task performance, Research funding, Noise, Logistic regression analysis, Descriptive statistics, Acoustic stimulation, Data analysis software, Phonetics
Abstract: Purpose: Lexical information shapes the interpretation of ambiguous speech sounds, often biasing perception toward real words rather than nonwords-a phenomenon known as lexical bias. This study examined the extent to which signal degradation and cognitive load modulate this bias. Method: Younger adults with normal hearing categorized stimuli along two word-nonword continua (Bap/Gap and Back/Gack), which differed primarily in the formant transitions of the initial consonant. Stimuli were either unprocessed or vocoded to introduce signal degradation, simulating cochlear implant listening. Cognitive load was manipulated via a dual-task paradigm: Participants memorized digits (Experiment A) or images (Experiment B) under low- and high-cognitive-load conditions while performing the categorization task. Results: Across both experiments, participants demonstrated robust lexical bias and reported more "Gap" (word) responses for the Bap/Gap continuum and more "Back" (word) responses for the Back/Gack continuum. Vocoded stimuli elicited stronger lexical bias than unprocessed stimuli. In Experiment A, the digit memory task produced a significant interaction: The increase in lexical bias for vocoded stimuli was attenuated under high cognitive load relative to low cognitive load. In Experiment B, the image memory task yielded no significant effect of cognitive load on lexical bias. Conclusions: Signal degradation amplifies lexical bias during speech perception, whereas cognitive load appears to exert only limited influence. These findings have implications for understanding how individuals relying on spectrally degraded signals may draw on lexical knowledge to support speech perception in challenging conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Speech, Language & Hearing Research is the property of American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Education Research Complete
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  Data: Lexical Bias During Speech Perception Increases Under Signal Degradation but Not Cognitive Load.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Xie%2C+Zilong%22">Xie, Zilong</searchLink><relatesTo>1</relatesTo><i> zx22c@fsu.edu</i>
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Phonological+awareness%22">Phonological awareness</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Speech+perception%22">Speech perception</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Vocabulary%22">Vocabulary</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Auditory+perception%22">Auditory perception</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Short-term+memory%22">Short-term memory</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Cognition%22">Cognition</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Cochlear+implants%22">Cochlear implants</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Task+performance%22">Task performance</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Research+funding%22">Research funding</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Noise%22">Noise</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Logistic+regression+analysis%22">Logistic regression analysis</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Descriptive+statistics%22">Descriptive statistics</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Acoustic+stimulation%22">Acoustic stimulation</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Data+analysis+software%22">Data analysis software</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Phonetics%22">Phonetics</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: Purpose: Lexical information shapes the interpretation of ambiguous speech sounds, often biasing perception toward real words rather than nonwords-a phenomenon known as lexical bias. This study examined the extent to which signal degradation and cognitive load modulate this bias. Method: Younger adults with normal hearing categorized stimuli along two word-nonword continua (Bap/Gap and Back/Gack), which differed primarily in the formant transitions of the initial consonant. Stimuli were either unprocessed or vocoded to introduce signal degradation, simulating cochlear implant listening. Cognitive load was manipulated via a dual-task paradigm: Participants memorized digits (Experiment A) or images (Experiment B) under low- and high-cognitive-load conditions while performing the categorization task. Results: Across both experiments, participants demonstrated robust lexical bias and reported more "Gap" (word) responses for the Bap/Gap continuum and more "Back" (word) responses for the Back/Gack continuum. Vocoded stimuli elicited stronger lexical bias than unprocessed stimuli. In Experiment A, the digit memory task produced a significant interaction: The increase in lexical bias for vocoded stimuli was attenuated under high cognitive load relative to low cognitive load. In Experiment B, the image memory task yielded no significant effect of cognitive load on lexical bias. Conclusions: Signal degradation amplifies lexical bias during speech perception, whereas cognitive load appears to exert only limited influence. These findings have implications for understanding how individuals relying on spectrally degraded signals may draw on lexical knowledge to support speech perception in challenging conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Speech, Language & Hearing Research is the property of American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=ehh&AN=197210496
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        Value: 10.1044/2026_JSLHR-25-01005
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      – Code: eng
        Text: English
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        StartPage: 4490
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      – SubjectFull: Phonological awareness
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Speech perception
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Vocabulary
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      – SubjectFull: Auditory perception
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      – SubjectFull: Cochlear implants
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      – SubjectFull: Task performance
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Research funding
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      – SubjectFull: Noise
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Logistic regression analysis
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Descriptive statistics
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Acoustic stimulation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Data analysis software
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Phonetics
        Type: general
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      – TitleFull: Lexical Bias During Speech Perception Increases Under Signal Degradation but Not Cognitive Load.
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              M: 09
              Text: Sep2026
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              Y: 2026
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