Statistical Learning of Language: A Meta‐Analysis Into 25 Years of Research

Erin S. Isbilen; Morten H. Christiansen

doi:10.1111/cogs.13198

journal article Sep 01, 2022

Statistical Learning of Language: A Meta‐Analysis Into 25 Years of Research

Erin S. Isbilen Morten H. Christiansen

Cognitive Science Vol. 46 No. 9 · Wiley

View at Publisher Save 10.1111/cogs.13198

Abstract

AbstractStatistical learning is a key concept in our understanding of language acquisition. Ample work has highlighted its role in numerous linguistic functions—yet statistical learning is not a unitary construct, and its consistency across different language properties remains unclear. In a meta‐analysis of auditory‐linguistic statistical learning research spanning the last 25 years, we evaluated how learning varies across different language properties in infants, children, and adults and surveyed the methodological trends in the literature. We found robust learning across stimuli (syllables, words, etc.) in infants, and across stimuli and structures (adjacent dependencies, non‐adjacent dependencies, etc.) in adults, with larger effect sizes when multiple cues were present. However, the analysis also showed significant publication bias and revealed a tendency toward using a narrow range of simplified language properties, including in the strength of the transitional probabilities used during training. Bayes factor analyses revealed prevalent data insensitivity of moderators commonly hypothesized to impact learning, such as the amount of exposure and transitional probability strength, which contradict core theoretical assumptions in the field. Methodological factors, such as the tasks used at test, also significantly impacted effect sizes in adults and children, suggesting that choice of task may critically constrain current theories of how statistical learning operates. Collectively, our results suggest that auditory‐linguistic statistical learning has the kind of robustness needed to play a foundational role in language acquisition, but that more research is warranted to reveal its full potential.

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Details

Published: Sep 01, 2022
Vol/Issue: 46(9)
License: View

Authors

E

Erin S. Isbilen

Department of Psychology, Cornell University; Haskins Laboratories

M

Morten H. Christiansen

Department of Psychology, Cornell University; Haskins Laboratories; Interacting Minds Centre and School of Communication and Culture, Aarhus University

Cite This Article

Erin S. Isbilen, Morten H. Christiansen (2022). Statistical Learning of Language: A Meta‐Analysis Into 25 Years of Research. Cognitive Science, 46(9). https://doi.org/10.1111/cogs.13198

Statistical Learning of Language: A Meta‐Analysis Into 25 Years of Research

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