Purpose: The human voice usually contains two types of information: linguistic and identity information. However, whether and how linguistic information interacts with identity information remains controversial. This study aimed to explore the processing of identity and linguistic information during spoken word processing by considering the modulation of attention. Method: We conducted two event-related potentials (ERPs) experiments in the study. Different speakers (self, friend, and unfamiliar speakers) and emotional words (positive, negative, and neutral words) were used to manipulate the identity and linguistic information. With the manipulation, Experiment 1 explored the identity and linguistic information processing with a word decision task that requires participants' explicit attention to linguistic information. Experiment 2 further investigated the issue with a passive oddball paradigm that requires rare attention to either the identity or linguistic information. Results: Experiment 1 revealed an interaction among speaker, word type, and hemisphere in N400 amplitudes but not in N100 and P200, which suggests that identity information interacted with linguistic information at the later stage of spoken word processing. The mismatch negativity results of Experiment 2 showed no significant interaction between speaker and word pair, which indicates that identity and linguistic information were processed independently. Conclusions: The identity information would interact with linguistic information during spoken word processing. However, the interaction was modulated by the task demands on attention involvement. We propose an attention-modulated explanation to explain the mechanism underlying identity and linguistic information processing. Implications of our findings are discussed in light of the integration and independence theories.

The speaker’s identity (who the speaker is) and linguistic information (what the speaker is saying) are essential to daily communication. However, it is unclear whether and how listeners process the two types of information differently in speech perception. The present study adopted a passive oddball paradigm to compare the identity and linguistic information processing concerning neural resource involvements and hemispheric lateralization patterns. We used two female native Mandarin speakers’ real and pseudo-Mandarin words to differentiate the identity from linguistic (phonological and lexical) information. The results showed that, in real words, the phonological-lexical variation elicited larger MMN amplitudes than the identity variation. In contrast, there were no significant MMN amplitude differences between the identity and phonological variation in pseudo words. Regardless of real or pseudo words, the identity and linguistic variation did not elicit MMN amplitudes differences between the left and right hemispheres. Taken together, findings from the present study indicated that the identity information recruited similar neural resources to the phonological information but different neural resources from the lexical information. However, the identity and linguistic information processing did not show a particular hemispheric lateralization pattern at an early pre-attentive speech perception stage. The findings revealed similarities and differences between linguistic and non-linguistic information processing, contributing to a better understanding of speech perception and spoken word recognition.

Grounded in the Cognitive Theory of Multimedia Learning and Cognitive Load Theory, this study examined how cue-based instructional support relates to L2 Chinese vocabulary processing and immediate learning outcomes. Forty intermediate-to-advanced learners studied 24 disyllabic pseudowords under four within-subject conditions: no cueing, verbal cueing (linguistic–semantic support via definitions and collocations), physical cueing (typographical enhancement via bolded targets and underlined contextual words), and full cueing. Eye movements, immediate post-tests, and questionnaires were analyzed. The results revealed selective, measure-dependent effects rather than uniform facilitation. In the Orthographic Choice Task, no cueing outperformed full cueing. In the Semantic Priming Decision Task, verbal cueing yielded a higher accuracy than physical cueing, indicating that linguistic–semantic support benefited initial meaning-related processing more than typographical enhancement. No differences emerged in the Sentence Acceptability Judgment Task. Eye-tracking showed shorter first fixations under physical than verbal cueing, suggesting the limited facilitation of early visual orienting. Full cueing showed no consistent advantage over verbal cueing but elicited larger pupil sizes and longer total fixation durations on targets, indicating additional coordination demands. Learners most often preferred full-cueing materials, yet rated verbal cueing as most helpful. An effective cue-based design should align the cue format and content with the target learning dimension while avoiding unnecessary processing demands. The findings reflect immediate learning under controlled conditions rather than long-term acquisition.