Shaping phonetic performance in second language learners
| dc.contributor.author | Leung, Hiu-Nam Jaime | |
| dc.contributor.examiningcommittee | Pear, Joseph (Psychology) Moussavi, Zahra (Biomedical Engineering) | en_US |
| dc.contributor.supervisor | Jakobson, Lorna (Psychology) Virues-Ortega, Javier (Psychology) | en_US |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2015-06-18T17:00:01Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2015-06-18T17:00:01Z | |
| dc.date.issued | 2015-06-18 | |
| dc.degree.discipline | Psychology | en_US |
| dc.degree.level | Master of Arts (M.A.) | en_US |
| dc.description.abstract | This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of a software-administered shaping procedure in guiding English monolinguals to acquire accurate Mandarin pronunciation. A single-subject reversal ABAB design was used to evaluate treatment effects. A purposely-developed algorithm generated an accuracy score defined as the similarity between a participant’s utterance and the target pronunciation. The shaping procedure provided performance-dependent reinforcement, while the control condition provided performance-independent reinforcement at a density yoked to the shaping procedure. A no-feedback condition assessed spontaneous language learning ability prior to treatment. Data were evaluated via visual analysis and complemented with effect size analyses and repeated-measures ANOVAs. There were no overall treatment effects. However, three individuals demonstrated a statistically significant difference between treatment and control. A follow-up study compared shaping to no feedback using a simplified procedure and simpler stimuli. A multiple-baseline design was used. The results showed no treatment effects. Possible contributing factors and directions for future research are discussed. | en_US |
| dc.description.note | October 2015 | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/1993/30582 | |
| dc.language.iso | eng | en_US |
| dc.rights | open access | en_US |
| dc.subject | second language learning | en_US |
| dc.subject | computer-assisted language learning | en_US |
| dc.subject | shaping | en_US |
| dc.title | Shaping phonetic performance in second language learners | en_US |
| dc.type | master thesis | en_US |