Uncovering the foundational mechanism of speech adaptation at the intersection of production and perception.

Humans typically possess the ability to communicate effortlessly through speech, alternating between speech production and perception. A critical skill for effective communication is the ability to adapt speech to acoustic environments (e.g., noise). Such speech adjustments are often involuntary and exemplified by phenomena like the Lombard effect, where speakers in noisy environments naturally enhance speech clarity by exaggerating word pronunciation (acoustic measures). On the other hand, individuals exhibit variability in their speech adaptation abilities, with those with lower adaptation abilities experiencing reduced communication effectiveness. Previous studies have shown that speech adaptation promotes listeners' speech perception. But the relationship between an individual's adaptation ability and their own speech perception skills is still unclear. I hypothesize that individuals who are proficient in speech adaptation are also better at perceiving others' speech. I assume that speech production and perception processes are integrally connected within the same individuals but the precise mechanisms linking these processes remain elusive. This project aims to bridge this knowledge gap by exploring the link between acoustic measures of speech production adaptation and neurophysiology of speech perception. Experimental work will pioneer the integrated study of behavioural measures with neurophysiological techniques, such as electroencephalography (EEG), to study the real-time dynamics of speech communication during live interactions. I will investigate whether acoustic measures serve as indicators of individual differences in speech perception abilities. I will leverage cutting-edge analysis techniques that allow the investigation of neural responses to continuous adapted speech. This project will provide novel insights into the dynamics of speech communication and advance the understanding of the aetiology of speech perception and production issues.