Chapter 8. Effects of foreign-accented speech on language comprehension processes and social cognition

Abstract

In this chapter, we review the literature on how foreign-accented speech modulates cognitive processes related to language comprehension and describe the interactions between native and non-native speakers. First, we focus on how language comprehension processes are modulated when native listeners listen to foreign-accented speakers. Whilst the results about acoustic-phonetic and syntactic processing are relatively consistent throughout the literature on the subject, there is currently a debate on what the effects of foreign-accented speech are on lexical-semantic processing. Secondly, we analyze the literature on how foreign listeners process foreign-accented speech, a field of research that has grown recently. Then, we discuss how native and non-native speakers align with one another during verbal interactions. Finally, we examine the cognitive biases that native listeners show when interacting with non-native speakers that modulate social cognition processes.