Perception-production link mediated by position in the imitation of Korean nasal stops

This study explores how perceptual cues in two positions influence imitation of Korean nasal stops. As a result of initial denasalization, nasality cues are secondary in the initial position but primary in the medial position. Categorization and imitation tasks using CV (consonant-vowel) and VCV (vowel-consonant-vowel) items on a continuum from voiced oral to nasal stops were completed by 32 Korean speakers. Results revealed categorical imitation of nasality medially, whereas imitation was gradient or minimal initially. Furthermore, individuals requiring stronger nasality cues to categorize a nasal sound produced greater nasality in imitation. These findings highlight a perception-production link mediated by positional cue reliance.