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Mouthings in three sign languages using Virtual Reality (VR) glasses (Meta Quest Pro)

Project description

In this project we compare authenticity judgments on the use of mouthing in German Sign Language (DGS), American Sign Language (ASL) and Russian Sign Language (RSL). The aim of the study is two-fold: to compare authenticity judgments and the metalinguistic awareness of mouthings in three sign languages and to examine the applicability of VR-application for linguistic analysis of mouth movement in natural signing.
Recent studies show that ASL signers rate videos of ASL signing produced with lower mouthing more positively than those produced with higher mouthing (Bisnath 2024). Conversely in DGS, avatars producing signing without mouthing are perceived as highly unnatural by deaf signers (Kipp et al. 2011). Nothing is known about the perception of mouthing in RSL signing and there is no research to directly compare the frequency of mouthing between ASL and DGS. DGS is known to employ mouthings quite extensively (Ebbinghaus and Heßmann, 1995), while RSL has been recently described to use mouthing significantly less in deaf natural signing (Bauer & Kyuseva 2020). Anecdotal evidence suggests that ASL might use even less mouthing than RSL. We therefore expect that DGS, ASL and RSL signers will differ in their authenticity judgments about the frequency of mouthing in their respective languages. To explore this we apply avatar technology (Mehler et al. 2023; Henlein et al. 2023). We expect that beliefs about the naturalness of different levels of mouthing will differ based on differences in the overall prevalence of mouthing in these sign languages. The question of naturalness gives an idea of how much signers perceive mouthing to be part of their sign languages adding a much needed evaluative dimension to the broader questioning of the status of mouthing found in sign language linguistics.

Figure 1: Visualization of META Avatars

Collaboration with: Roman Poryadin, Felicia Bisnath, Alexander Henlein, Andy Lücking & Alexander Mehler

Main outcome:

Anastasia Bauer, Roman Poryadin, Bisnath, Felicia, Henlein, Alexander, Lücking, Andy & Alexander Mehler. (in prep). Divergent Perceptions of Mouthings in Three Sign Languages: An Experimental VR study.