Age-related changes in acoustic modifications of Mandarin maternal speech to preverbal infants and five-year-old children: a longitudinal study

Liu, Huei Mei; Tsao, Feng‐Ming; Kuhl, Patricia K.

doi:10.1017/s030500090800929x

Cited by 97 publications

(112 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Infant-directed speech has also been hypothetized to facilitate language learning [6] by supporting the construction of phonetic and vowel categories [7,8], the clearer production of consonants [3] and the acquisition of new words [9]. This role in language learning is consistent with the decrease in the use and acoustic specificity of infant-directed speech that follows the development of language skills during the first year of the child [10][11][12]. At a proximal level, these dynamic changes could be explained by modifications of the baby's reactions to speech.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Dog-directed speech: why do we use it and do dogs pay attention to it?

et al. 2017

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Pet-directed speech is strikingly similar to infant-directed speech, a peculiar speaking pattern with higher pitch and slower tempo known to engage infants' attention and promote language learning. Here, we report the first investigation of potential factors modulating the use of dog-directed speech, as well as its immediate impact on dogs' behaviour. We recorded adult participants speaking in front of pictures of puppies, adult and old dogs, and analysed the quality of their speech. We then performed playback experiments to assess dogs' reaction to dog-directed speech compared with normal speech. We found that human speakers used dog-directed speech with dogs of all ages and that the acoustic structure of dog-directed speech was mostly independent of dog age, except for sound pitch which was relatively higher when communicating with puppies. Playback demonstrated that, in the absence of other non-auditory cues, puppies were highly reactive to dog-directed speech, and that the pitch was a key factor modulating their behaviour, suggesting that this specific speech register has a functional value in young dogs. Conversely, older dogs did not react differentially to dog-directed speech compared with normal speech. The fact that speakers continue to use dog-directed with older dogs therefore suggests that this speech pattern may mainly be a spontaneous attempt to facilitate interactions with non-verbal listeners.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 88%

Dog-directed speech: why do we use it and do dogs pay attention to it?

et al. 2017

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“…Most of the studies that investigated vowel hyperarticulation in speech to normal-hearing infants relative to adult-directed (AD) speech have focused on vowel contrasts that are differentiated by one primary acoustic dimension (e.g., formant frequencies) in the phonological system of the native language (Burnham et al, 2002;Kuhl et al, 1997;Lam and Kitamura, 2010;Liu et al, 2009;Uther et al, 2007). A recent study by Englund and Behn (2005) also demonstrated that Norwegian mothers exaggerate spectral properties and vowel duration that are both phonologically distinctive features in Norwegian.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of deafness on acoustic characteristics of American English tense/lax vowels in maternal speech to infants

Kondaurova

Bergeson

Dilley

2012

The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America

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Recent studies have demonstrated that mothers exaggerate phonetic properties of infant-directed (ID) speech. However, these studies focused on a single acoustic dimension (frequency), whereas speech sounds are composed of multiple acoustic cues. Moreover, little is known about how mothers adjust phonetic properties of speech to children with hearing loss. This study examined mothers' production of frequency and duration cues to the American English tense/lax vowel contrast in speech to profoundly deaf (N ¼ 14) and normal-hearing (N ¼ 14) infants, and to an adult experimenter. First and second formant frequencies and vowel duration of tense (/i/, /u/) and lax (/I/, /U/) vowels were measured. Results demonstrated that for both infant groups mothers hyperarticulated the acoustic vowel space and increased vowel duration in ID speech relative to adult-directed speech. Mean F2 values were decreased for the /u/ vowel and increased for the /I/ vowel, and vowel duration was longer for the /i/, /u/, and /I/ vowels in ID speech. However, neither acoustic cue differed in speech to hearing-impaired or normal-hearing infants. These results suggest that both formant frequencies and vowel duration that differentiate American English tense/lx vowel contrasts are modified in ID speech regardless of the hearing status of the addressee.

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“…Infant directed speech (IDS) and childdirected speech (CDS) consist of utterances that are shorter, more repetitious, and higher and more varied in pitch in comparison to adultdirected speech (ADS; Fernald & Simon, 1984;Snow, 1977). IDS and CDS are also characterized by vowels that are longer in duration and more "stretched" in acoustic space (Englund & Behne, 2005;Kuhl et al, 1997;Liu, Tsao, & Kuhl, 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%