AI Article Synopsis
- Interval-based rhythm metrics were analyzed in the speech of 2, 4, and 6-year-olds speaking English, Catalan, and Spanish, and compared to their mothers' speech.
- Child speech was found to be more 'vocalic' with a higher percentage of vocalic intervals and less variability in vocalic interval duration, while consonantal interval variability was higher, especially in younger children.
- The study identified both shared patterns across languages in child speech and distinct rhythmic features specific to each language, even in the speech of 2-year-olds.
Article Abstract
Interval-based rhythm metrics were applied to the speech of English, Catalan and Spanish 2, 4 and 6 year-olds, and compared with the (adult-directed) speech of their mothers. Results reveal that child speech does not fall into a well-defined rhythmic class: for all three languages, it is more 'vocalic' (higher %V) than adult speech and has a tendency towards lower variability (when normalized for speech rate) in vocalic interval duration. Consonantal interval variability, however, is higher in child speech, particularly for younger children. Nevertheless, despite the identification of common, cross-linguistic patterns in child speech, the emergence of language-specific rhythmic indices is also clearly observable, even in the speech of 2 year-olds.
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/0023830911417687 | DOI Listing |
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