Melcher, Eleanna
(2019)
Match the melodies: how do musical ability and training frequency affect translation-ambiguous word learning?
Undergraduate Thesis, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
This study investigated how musical ability/experience and training frequency for translation-ambiguous words affects learning. Native English speakers with no prior exposure to Dutch or German were taught German vocabulary words that were either unambiguous (one English translation) or ambiguous (two translations). Translation-ambiguous words were counterbalanced into two conditions, standard and overtrained (with the second translation being presented either three times or six times respectively). The testing assessments were a translation recognition task in which participants indicated whether pairs of words were translations and a free recall task. Participants also completed four indices of musical ability and experience: comparing rhythmic and melodic phrases, listening to and singing short melodies, and reflecting on their subjective musical experiences. This study provides further support for the challenges of learning translation-ambiguous words. It presents a potential method by which to alleviate the translation-ambiguity disadvantage, specifically by overtraining the second translation of ambiguous words. Furthermore, it illustrates the presence of an interaction between musical ability and lexical learning, such that greater musical ability scores led to better learning outcomes.
Share
| Citation/Export: |
|
| Social Networking: |
|
Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
|
| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
|
| ETD Committee: |
|
| Date: |
23 April 2019 |
| Date Type: |
Publication |
| Defense Date: |
15 April 2019 |
| Approval Date: |
23 April 2019 |
| Submission Date: |
18 April 2019 |
| Access Restriction: |
5 year -- Restrict access to University of Pittsburgh for a period of 5 years. |
| Number of Pages: |
91 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
David C. Frederick Honors College
Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Psychology |
| Degree: |
BPhil - Bachelor of Philosophy |
| Thesis Type: |
Undergraduate Thesis |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
Translation-ambiguity; frequency manipulation; musical ability |
| Date Deposited: |
23 Apr 2019 20:01 |
| Last Modified: |
23 Apr 2024 05:15 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/36518 |
Metrics
Monthly Views for the past 3 years
Plum Analytics
Actions (login required)
 |
View Item |
![[feed]](/images/feed-icon-32x32.png){kind=icon}