Charlotte Vaughn

When we listen to someone talk, we not only attempt to understand the meanings of the words they are saying, but we also make inferences about the speaker based on aspects of their speech. My work examines the intersection of these two processes. In general, I ask: What do listeners expect, understand, evaluate, and remember from others’ speech, particularly when that speech sounds different than their own? What factors influence these processes? In this way, I am fundamentally interested in variability, from variability in the speech signal (from different talkers, native languages, accents, styles, contexts, social group memberships, etc.) to variability introduced by the listener (their experiences, attitudes, biases, and attentional states). Studying the cognitive aspects of socially meaningful speech communication involves an interdisciplinary approach; I bring together methodologies and insights from phonetics, sociolinguistics, psycholinguistics, cognitive psychology, and social psychology. I have a strong applied angle to my work, and am involved in a range of outreach projects, aiming to connect with the public about language science.