Langston Psycholinguistics Lecture 4 Speech production

Speech Production Interchangeability: “individuals who use a language can both send and receive any permissible message within that communication system”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwHpBwAxDIs

Speech Production Questions: Model for speech production? Grammar for speech production? Does this affect our thinking about explanations for speech perception?

Speech Production Model: The data for understanding production are errors. Common types: Shift: One segment moves from its appropriate location. “That's so she'll be ready in case she decide to hits it.” Exchange: Two units change place. “Fancy getting your model renosed.”

Speech Production The data for understanding production are errors. Common types: Anticipation: A segment is produced too early. “Go ahead, bake my bike.” Perseveration: A segment gets repeated. “He pulled a pantrum.” Addition: Add a segment. “I didn't explain this clarefully enough.”

Speech Production The data for understanding production are errors. Common types: Deletion: A segment gets left out. “I'll just get up and mutter __intelligibly.” Substitution: Substitute a related segment for the intended segment. “At low speeds it's too light.” Blends: Two possible segments become blended. “That child is looking to be spaddled.”

Speech Production Errors occur at all levels (phonological, morphological, syntactic). Don't usually bridge levels (e.g., phonological errors in syntactically correct sentences).

Speech Production Common properties of errors: Elements that interact come from similar environments (e.g., ends swap with ends). Elements that interact tend to be similar (e.g., consonants with consonants). Errors that produce novel linguistic items are still consistent with other rules. Errors have same stress pattern as correct.

Speech Production Sources of errors: Freudian: Errors represent something “leaking out” of the unconscious. “Good morning beheaded…er, beloved.” Bine foddy. Psycholinguistic: Speech production is hard work and cognitively taxing. Errors are to be expected.

Speech Production Production model: 1. Conceptualize: 2. Form a linguistic plan: a. Identify meaning: Find definitions that match the thought. b. Select syntactic structure: Generally SVO, but English has a variety of sentence plans. Choose the one that fits.

Speech Production Production model: 2. Form a linguistic plan: c. Generate an intonation contour: Stress pattern. “Why would Jerry bring anything?” vs. “Why would Jerry bring anything?” Or play this example. d. Insert content words. e. Form affixes and function words.

Speech Production Production model: 2. Form a linguistic plan: f. Specify phonetic segments. g. Edit: Check for basic errors.

Speech Production BALL DOZE BASH DOOR BEAN DECK BELL DARK DARN BORE

Speech Production BIG DUTCH BANG DOLL BILL DEAL BARK DOG DART BOARD

Speech Production Production model: 2. Form a linguistic plan: Errors support dividing into these steps. “Stop beating your brick against a head wall.” (stage d) Errors support the sequence. “It certainly run outs fast.” If /s/ on out, then phonetic after affixes. If /z/ then affixes after phonetics.

Speech Production Production model: 3. Implement the plan. Planning and production appear to go in cycles.

Speech Production Roberts & Kirsner (2000):

Speech Production Production model: 3. Implement the plan. This is generally taken to reflect working memory limitations. Planning is expensive, so you can't get an entire sentence at once.

Speech Production Production model: 4. Self-monitoring. In addition to the error checking in the planning step. Self-interruption. Signal that you have spotted an error.

Speech Production

Speech Production Production model: 4. Self-monitoring. Interruptions: Within a word: “We can go straight on to the ye-, er pink.” 18% After a word: “Straight on to green- to red.” 51% Later: “and from green left to pink, er from blue left to pink.” 31% Interrupt with an editing expression (e.g., “uh”).

Speech Production Production model: 4. Self-monitoring. Self-repair. Fix the problem.

Speech Production Grammar: Set of elements (phonetic features). Rules for combining those elements. (The following is from Fernández & Cairns, 2011)

Speech Production Grammar: For example: /p/ in the initial position of a stressed syllable is aspirated. Apart, important, apple, spin. Flap /t/ and /d/ between two vowels and in the onset of an unstressed syllable. Writing, riding, matter, madder. Fatter, faster, city, baton, potato.

Speech Production Grammar: Also possible sequences constrained (syllables): Nucleus: Vowel. Onset: Syllable initial consonants. Coda: Final consonants. Rime: Nucleus + coda.

Speech Production Grammar: Also possible sequences constrained (syllables): All languages have syllables with vowels. All languages have syllables with a consonant followed by a vowel. English unrestricted for syllable-final consonants, some languages more restricted.

Speech Production Grammar: Also possible sequences constrained (syllables): English won't allow syllables to begin with /dl/ or /tl/. Etc.

Speech Production Grammar: (From Pinker) Ping-pong vs. pong-ping: High-front vowels come before low-back vowels. Other phonetic symbolisms (p. 163).

Speech Production Grammar: (From Pinker, p. 169) Ptak, thale, hlad, plaft, sram, mgla, vlas, flutch, dnom, rtut, toasp, nyip Which ones could be English? English allows some consonant clusters in onsets (e.g., /pl/) but not others (e.g., /vl/). Japanese rimes must have a bare vowel (strawberry = sutoroberi).

Speech Production Grammar: (From Pinker, p. 173) I is longer before voiced than unvoiced consonants (e.g., ride vs. write). This rule is applied before flapping rule. Spreading voicelessness. p. 175: Features are what are the unit, not phonemes. p. 177: Note parity and interchangeability: Laziness of speakers counteracted by need for clarity for listeners.

Speech Production Does our discussion of production affect our decision-making about models of perception? Direct realism. FLMP. Motor theory.

Speech Production Is our discussion of production affected by our discussion of perception? Direct realism. FLMP. Motor theory.

Speech Production Fox Tree & Tomlinson (2008; doi:10.1080/01638530701739280) Not really speech production per se, but production. “Like” (be + like) has risen in frequency relative to “said” to mark quotations: “I was like 'You should hotwire the bus'” (p. 85).

Speech Production Fox Tree & Tomlinson (2008, p. 92): Variable 1980s Said 85% 7% Like 4% 92% Goes 11% 2%

Speech Production Fox Tree & Tomlinson (2008): Why? Like indicates unfaithful quotation, said implies accuracy. “She's like, 'blah, blah, blah'” (p. 89). Like does things that said can't: Convey thoughts as well. “And he would use that excuse, and I'm like, 'What are you talking about?'” (p. 100). “Mimic vocal effects, sound effects, or gestures in a way that said cannot.” “He was like opening his drawers but they were stuck so he was like, 'Raah aah'” (p. 100).

Speech Production Fox Tree & Tomlinson (2008): Why? The data supported the second possibility. “Like” has gained in popularity because it does more.

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