Understanding how people adapt to different accents in speech
Official title: Identifying the mechanisms of adaptive speech perception
Funded at University of California-Irvine · NIH-11067758 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is looking at how people understand speech when they hear different accents and ways of talking, and it's designed to help anyone who has trouble understanding speech because of these differences.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California-Irvine NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Irvine, United States) |
| Project start | April 5, 2024 |
| Project end | March 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $332,334 |
| NIH project number | 5R01HD111936-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11067758 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research include children and adults who experience challenges in speech comprehension due to diverse accents.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who do not experience difficulties with speech perception or who have no interest in understanding accent variability may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research investigates how listeners adapt their understanding of speech when faced with different accents and pronunciations. By examining the cognitive and perceptual mechanisms involved, the study aims to uncover how individuals adjust their interpretations based on variations in speech caused by factors like physiology and social identity. Utilizing a computational framework, the research will conduct experiments to test various hypotheses about speech perception and comprehension. This approach could lead to better communication strategies and tools for individuals struggling with speech variability.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could enhance communication strategies for individuals who have difficulty understanding speech due to accent variations.
How similar studies have gone: Previous research has shown promising results in understanding speech perception, but this approach is innovative in its use of computational modeling to explore adaptive mechanisms.
Where this research is happening
-
University of California-Irvine
Irvine, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Xie, Xin — University of California-Irvine
- Study coordinator: Xie, Xin
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Silent speech interface using a wearable tongue tracker to help people after laryngectomy communicate
A wearable system with tongue sensors and intraoral components aims to let people without a vocal cord use natural-sounding speech in daily life.
-
Overlap between how we speak and how we hold words in memory
A Duke-led project studies how the brain that talks relates to keeping verbal information in working memory, using advanced brain recordings from patients already undergoing medical care.
-
AI-powered system to improve teamwork in cardiac surgery
A research project is testing an AI-driven system that listens to team conversations during heart surgeries to spot teamwork patterns and give real-time feedback to improve patient safety.
-
Caregiver Speech and Infant Brain Development in Siblings of Children with Autism
This project follows babies who have an older sibling with autism to explore how caregiver talk and everyday interactions relate to early brain and behavior development.
-
How speech and swallowing work in people with Down syndrome
Researchers will look at how differences in the mouth, throat, and brain affect speech clarity and safe swallowing in children and adults with Down syndrome.
-
Information and social media use for autism info in young children
A research project looks at how speech-language pathologists and parents of young autistic children use social media for information and what makes that information trustworthy.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.