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Visual language experience modulates the perception of sublexical iconicity
Poster Session B, Friday, September 12, 4:30 - 6:00 pm, Field House
Kirill Aksenov1,2, Anique Schüller1, Brendan Costello1,3; 1BCBL - Basque Center on Cognition, Brain & Language, 2University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Spain, 3Ikerbasque, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, Spain
Iconicity refers to the perceived similarity between the form and meaning of a linguistic unit. Signed languages display more iconicity than spoken languages due to their visual modality and relatively young age. Prior work comparing ratings by signers of different languages has shown that the perception of iconicity is modulated by linguistic experience (Occhino et al. 2017). This study compares how signers and hearing non-signers perceive iconicity in two signed languages to examine the effect of experience with a language modality. Iconicity ratings by American Sign Language (ASL) signers and US non-signers were drawn from the ASL-LEX database for 300 ASL signs and by Spanish Sign Language (LSE) signers and Spanish non-signers from the LSE-sign database for 300 LSE signs. Each set contained a similar distribution of high and low iconic signs and 184 signs were translation equivalents. Ratings by signers and non-signers showed strong correlations in both languages: r(298) = .81, p < .001, r(298) = .74, p < .001. To examine whether discrepancies in ratings were systematic, we classified the iconic mechanisms at play in each sign. All signs were annotated for their iconic strategy using a phonological decomposition approach (adapted from Pietrandrea 2002). Each parameter – handshape, location, and movement – was categorized as either non-iconic or representing one of several iconic mappings. For handshape: SELF (hand as itself), REF (hand represents another entity), OUTLINE (outlining object shape). For location: SELF (body part represents itself), REF (body part represents another object), SPACE (marked location in space). For movement: SELF (movement reflects actual movement of referent), TRACE (movement traces shape of object), ABSTRACT (movement contributes to meaning in a more abstract way, e.g. movement forward to denote ‘future’). Importantly, within the set of translation equivalents, the distribution of iconic mechanisms did not differ significantly between ASL and LSE: both languages had the same most frequent combinations and nearly all logically possible combinations showed up in the annotations. Comparing signs with different combinations of iconic strategies confirmed that individual phonological parameters contribute separately to overall iconicity ratings. For instance, signs where handshape alone is iconic are consistently rated as less iconic than signs where multiple parameters contribute iconically (in both languages). Comparing ratings by signers and non-signers as a function of types of iconic mechanisms revealed different sensitivities to different combinations of iconic parameters. Signs with abstract movement and signs in which the hand or body represented itself were rated as more iconic by non-signers, whereas signs in which handshape represented an entity were rated more iconic by signers. These results suggest that non-signers identify direct iconic mappings more readily, while their experience with co-speech gestures may make abstract movements accessible to them. In contrast, signers (whether of LSE or ASL) rely on their linguistic knowledge, and consider signs with the most frequent and systematic combinations of mechanisms to be most iconic. In conclusion, iconicity can be decomposed into the contributions of different phonological parameters and experience with a signed language selectively tunes sensitivity to these iconic mechanisms.
Topic Areas: Signed Language and Gesture,