Cover Page
The handle
http://hdl.handle.net/1887/67540
holds various files of this Leiden University
dissertation.
Author: Geambasu, A.
Title: Simple rule learning is not simple : studies on infant and adult pattern perception
and production
Simple Rule Learning is Not Simple
The research reported here was supported by NWO Vrije Competitie grant 360.70.452 to Clara C. Levelt.
Published by
LOT phone: +31 30 253 6111
Trans 10 e-mail: lot@uu.nl
3512 JK Utrecht http://www.lotschool.nl The Netherlands
Cover illustration: Copac (Tree), by Mircea Nechita
ISBN: 978-94-6093-310-3 NUR: 616
Simple Rule Learning is Not Simple
Studies on Infant and Adult
Pattern Perception and Production
Proefschrift
ter verkrijging van
de graad van Doctor aan de Universiteit Leiden, op gezag van Rector Magnificus Prof.mr. C.J.J.M. Stolker,
volgens besluit van het College voor Promoties te verdedigen op dinsdag 11 december 2018
klokke 12.30 uur
door
Andreea Geambas
,u
Promotores: Prof. Dr. Clara C. Levelt Prof. Dr. Carel ten Cate
Promotiecommissie: Prof. Dr. LouAnn Gerken (University of Arizona) Prof. Dr. Janet Grijzenhout
Contents
Acknowledgements . . . ix
1 Introduction 1 1.1 Artificial grammar learning . . . 2
1.2 Domain specificity . . . 3
1.3 Repetition . . . 4
1.4 Familiarity . . . 6
1.5 Ecological validity . . . 7
1.5.1 Variability . . . 7
1.5.2 Task and instruction . . . 8
1.5.3 Grammar complexity . . . 9
1.6 Summary . . . 9
2 Rule learning in infants in the speech and general auditory domains 11 2.1 Abstract . . . 11
2.2 Introduction . . . 12
2.2.1 The present work . . . 14
viii
2.6 Combination of the 3 experiments . . . 32
2.6.1 Results . . . 33 2.7 General Discussion . . . 34 2.7.1 Repetition biases . . . 35 2.7.2 Future work . . . 36 2.8 Appendices . . . 37 2.8.1 Appendix A . . . 37 2.8.2 Appendix B . . . 38
3 Rule learning in infants in the visual domain 41 3.1 Abstract . . . 41 3.2 Introduction . . . 42 3.3 Method . . . 44 3.3.1 Participants . . . 44 3.3.2 Stimuli . . . 44 3.3.3 Procedure . . . 46 3.4 Results . . . 47 3.4.1 Data pre-processing . . . 47 3.4.2 Overall analysis . . . 48
3.4.3 Analysis per condition . . . 51
3.5 General Discussion . . . 54
3.5.1 Conclusion and future work . . . 55
3.6 Appendices . . . 57
3.6.1 Appendix A . . . 57
3.7 Acknowledgements . . . 57
4 Patterns in infant babbling 59 4.1 Abstract . . . 59
4.2 Introduction . . . 60
4.3 Language and Corpora Selection . . . 61
4.4 Corpus Data Collection . . . 62
4.5 Results . . . 63
4.5.1 Analysis . . . 65
4.6 General discussion . . . 70
4.7 Acknowledgements . . . 72
5 Rule learning in adults in the speech domain 73 5.1 Abstract . . . 73
5.2 Introduction . . . 74
5.3 Experiment 1 - Undirected familiarization . . . 77
5.3.1 Methods . . . 77
5.3.2 Results . . . 80
5.3.3 Reported strategies . . . 83
5.3.4 Discussion . . . 83
ix
5.4.1 Methods . . . 83
5.4.2 Results . . . 84
5.4.3 Discussion . . . 85
5.5 Experiment 3 - Implicitly directed testing . . . 85
5.5.1 Methods . . . 85
5.5.2 Results . . . 86
5.5.3 Discussion . . . 87
5.6 Experiment 4 - Feedback training . . . 87
5.6.1 Methods . . . 87 5.6.2 Results . . . 88 5.6.3 Discussion . . . 89 5.7 Overall analysis . . . 89 5.7.1 Stimulus variability . . . 89 5.7.2 Training length . . . 90 5.7.3 Reported strategies . . . 90 5.8 General Discussion . . . 91 5.8.1 Variation . . . 92 5.8.2 Feedback . . . 93 5.8.3 Instruction . . . 93 5.9 Conclusion . . . 94 5.10 Acknowledgements . . . 95
6 Rule learning with Lindenmayer grammars 97 6.1 Abstract . . . 97
6.2 Introduction . . . 98
6.3 Experiments 1 and 2 . . . 101
6.3.1 Methods and materials . . . 101
6.3.2 Descriptive statistics and results . . . 103
6.3.3 Discussion . . . 104
6.4 Experiment 3 . . . 107
6.4.1 Methods and materials . . . 107
6.4.2 Participants . . . 107
6.4.3 Stimuli . . . 107
6.4.4 Materials . . . 108
6.4.5 Procedure . . . 108
6.4.6 Analysis of the data . . . 109
x 7 Conclusion 117 7.1 Thesis summary . . . 117 7.2 Domain specificity . . . 119 7.3 Repetitions . . . 120 7.4 Familiarity . . . 122 7.5 Ecological validity . . . 122 7.5.1 Variability . . . 123
7.5.2 Task and instruction . . . 123
Acknowledgements
Thank you....
...to my supervisor and promotor Claartje Levelt for always encouraging me in my work, even when it felt like I wasn’t achieving anything, for making me comfortable to share my thoughts and have an open dialogue, work related or otherwise. Thank you for the example you set of being a successfully and healthily balancing academic and non-academic life, and smiling through it all.
...to my project mates and dear friends Raquel Garrido Alhama and Michelle Spierings, two brilliant researchers with whom I’ve been lucky enough to be able to enjoy collaboration, exchanges of ideas, stimulating conferences, and perhaps most importantly, good meals and lots of laughs and hugs. I could not have dreamed up better peers in the project. I can only hope we can work together again in the future.
...to my co-promotor Carel ten Cate and to Jelle Zuidema for your feedback, direction, knowledge, and guidance throughout this project. And for the nice company as well.
...to my committee members for your work in reading and commenting on my thesis and for your feedback.
xii
...to my officemate for three years, Marieke Meelen, who made those first three years of this journey so bright and sunny.
...to Marijn van ’t Veer, my colleague, then lab assistant, then officemate...thank you for your invaluable assistance in running some of the experiments in Chap-ter 2 as well as some work that didn’t make it into this thesis, and for generally keeping the lab running smoothly.
...to Thijs Schama for programming the infant experiments, and to Jos Pacilly for building a beautiful new baby lab and for the invaluable support in getting that up and running. Thank you also to Monique Bisschop for your help as lab assistant during my first year.
...to Christina Bergmann and Helen Buckler who kindly welcomed me in Ni-jmegen to introduce me to the world of infant language acquisition research and methods.
...to my wonderful collaborators, local and international, who are co-authors in each relevant chapter but also deserve a mention here. To everyone who welcomed me so warmly to the MARCS Institute in Sydney, especially Paola Escudero, Samra Alispahic, Rosmin Dadwani, Varghese Peters. I learned a great deal. Andrea Ravignani, your enthusiasm is always contagious. Daan van Renswoude, Ingmar Visser, and Maartje Raijmakers, thank you for co-authoring a paper that may never have had a chance at publication without your work and perspective.
...to all the lovely the students who conducted their minor projects, intern-ships, BA and MA theses with me and with Claartje, without whom this work would have taken at least twice as long: Astrid Gilein, Mirjam Bahlmann, Naomi Nota, Isabella Jordanoska, Renske Jacobs, Rabia Mahboeb, Johanne Rauwenhoff, Gosse Minnema, Floor Bonsel, Gijsbert Westland, Marjolein Mal-jaars, Lisa Kennedy, Yvette Spoolder, Sofja Volkova, and to Claire van Leeuwen, Mariska Scheel, and Laura Toron each of whom co-authored a chapter (paper).
...to the organizers and attendees of the Lorentz Workshop Comparative Biol-ogy of Language Learning (2017) for putting the wind back in my sails.
...to my paranymphs Marieke Meelen and Josefine Karlsson. I was lucky enough to have both of you in my life since day one of this journey, and I could not have done it without your emotional support, discussions, and laughter until the end.
xiii
...to my aunt and uncle, for your love.
...to my parents who have always encouraged and supported me in everything.
