简介

I am a cognitive psychologist interested in language. My research examines language processing (speaking and reading) in both native speakers and non-native speakers of a language and at varying levels of proficiency (bilinguals). One major focus is how we recognize words formed from several meaningful units or morphemes such as MIS+UNDERSTAND+ABLE. Questions include whether morphology is more than just conjoint effects of shared meaning and shared form and whether word recognition in one's native language varies across languages depending on their particular structure. To address these two questions, I have examined processing in English and Serbian and demonstrated that meaning as well as form play a role, even very early effect in the course of processing. A second major focus is whether the structure of one's native language influences processing in a second language. Here, I have looked at what makes irregular past tense forms like RAN or TAUGHT hard for some types of people (e.g., non native speakers from China (but not Serbia), children) to master. For these two questions, I have examined processing in English, Chinese and Serbian. I also study the interaction of linguistic codes at the level of writing systems (bi-alphabetism). My newest line of research examines the effect of accent on understanding and on memory in native speakers of American English. My students and I pursue these questions using a variety of experimental techniques in the laboratory at the University at Albany, SUNY and at Haskins in New Haven, CT where I am a senior scientist. Much of the work is supported by NICHD and is conducted in collaboration with colleagues in China, Serbia, Israel and The Netherlands.