ABSTRACT
While protocol-driven communication is a remarkable step towards reducing communication errors in cognitively-demanding environments (Wadhera et al., 2010), it is certainly not sufficient to eliminate potentially fatal communication errors. However, the adherence to communication protocols and standardized phraseology in many high-risk environments can benefit from adaptation to non-familiar dialects, as the constancy of relevant context and rigid syntactic structures may facilitate the understanding of non-familiar pronunciations (Yoon & Brown-Schmidt, 2013). In addition, exposure to dialectal and accented speech as part of initial training may also improve operational outcomes. Research in psycholinguistics has shown that despite initial challenges with impaired perception of unfamiliar accented speech, performance improves with repeated exposure and, in some cases, matches the performance of native speakers (Bradlow & Bent, 2008; Clarke & Garrett, 2004; Sidaras, Alexander, & Nygaard, 2009). This occurs despite training within limited contexts and over short exposures (Witteman, Weber, & McQueen, 2013). This adaptation is equally possible for both different regional dialects from the listener’s native language (Trude & Brown-Schmidt, 2012) and foreign-accented speech (Trude et al., 2013). Therefore, training L2 Englishspeaking pilots to perceive different types of accented English may reduce the likelihood of later misunderstandings in pilot-air traffic control communication, regardless of their native language(s).
