Signal and Context Components of Word-Recognition Behavior
Arthur N. Stowe, William P. Harris, Donald B. Hampton · The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America · 1963
Data are presented on the effect of speech-to-noise ratio and context on intelligibility of monosyllabic words. The context for words in noise was provided by parts of noisefree sentences. A formula called the discriminant rule is derived from a multidimensional theory of discrimination. It accounts for the speech-to-noise and context effects both for these data and for word-list effects found in experiments reported elsewhere. Fit of the discriminant rule to both experimental situations shows in what sense context limits the number of alternatives afforded the listener.