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The Philological Society President and Secretary's Annual Report for 1937 (Braunholtz & Woodward 1938) reports that J. R. Firth read a paper on ‘The Phonetic Structure of a Cypriotic Dialect’ to the meeting of the Society on 29 May 1937. Firth's paper was never published, and its very existence was subsequently forgotten. Happily, a manuscript and handout for the lecture as well as copious background notes relating to the study have recently come to light at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. Though somewhat incomplete, much of the content of the paper can be pieced together to yield a surprising new addition to the body of Firth's work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a bare‐bones meta‐analysis, the present study examined the effectiveness of the use of commonly considered alternative predictor methods as a means to reduce subgroup differences (i.e., the method‐change approach), taking into account the constructs assessed. With a focus on assessment centers, interviews, situational judgment tests, and work samples as alternative methods, the results indicated that consonant with the construct/method distinction, the effectiveness of a method in reducing subgroup differences is a function of the constructs assessed. Specifically, there are larger White‐African American subgroup differences that favor Whites for cognitive constructs on paper‐and‐pencil tests compared to the alternative methods; and most notably, the opposite result was obtained for noncognitive constructs such that, compared to paper‐and‐pencil assessments, substantially larger White‐African American subgroup differences were observed for alternative methods. A similar pattern of results was obtained for White‐Hispanic comparisons, albeit based on a smaller number of data points. In summary, the study's results indicate that the ubiquitously asserted effectiveness of the method‐change approach for reducing subgroup differences is overstated, with said effectiveness depending on the construct assessed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Aims Methods & Procedures Outcomes & Results Conclusions & Implications WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS What is already known on the subject What this paper adds to the existing knowledge What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? Despite the ability of cochlear implants (CIs) to provide children with access to speech, there is considerable variability in spoken language outcomes. Research aimed at identifying factors influencing speech production accuracy is needed.To characterize the consonant production accuracy of children with cochlear implants (CWCI) and an age‐matched group of children with typical hearing (CWTH) and to explore several factors that potentially affect the ability of both groups to accurately produce consonants.We administered the Bankson‐Bernthal Test of Phonology (BBTOP) to a group of 25 CWCI (mean age = 4;9, SD = 1;6, range = 3;2–8;5) implanted prior to 30 months of age with a mean duration of implant usage of 3;6 and an age‐matched group of 25 CWTH (mean age = 5;0, SD = 1;6, range = 3;1–8;6). The recorded results were transcribed, and the accuracy of the target consonants was determined. Expressive vocabulary size estimates were obtained from a language sample using the number of different words (NDW). A parent questionnaire provided information about maternal education, duration of CIs experience and other demographic characteristics of each child.The CWCI group demonstrated some similarities to, and some differences from, their hearing peers. The CWCI demonstrated poorer consonant production accuracy overall and in various phonetic categories and word positions. However, both groups produced initial consonants more accurately than final consonants. Whilst CWCI had poorer production accuracy than CWTH for all phonetic categories (stops, nasals, fricatives, affricates, liquids and glides and consonant clusters), both groups exhibited similar error patterns across categories. For CWCI, the factors most related to consonant production accuracy when considered individually were expressive vocabulary size, followed by duration of CI experience, chronological age, maternal education and gender. The combination of maternal education and vocabulary size resulted in the best model of consonant production accuracy for this group. For the CWTH, chronological age followed by vocabulary size were most related to consonant production accuracy. No combination of factors yielded an improved model for the CWTH.Whilst group differences in production accuracy between the CWCI and CWTH were found, the pattern of errors was similar for the two groups of children, suggesting that the children are at earlier stages of overall consonant production development. Although duration of CI experience was a significant covariate in a single‐variable model of consonant production accuracy for CWCI, the best multivariate model of consonant production accuracy for these children was based on the combination of expressive vocabulary size and maternal education. Research has shown that a range of factors is associated with consonant production accuracy by CWCIs, including factors such as the age at implant, duration of implant use, gender, other language skills and maternal education. Despite numerous studies that have examined speech sound production in these children, most have explored a limited number of factors that might explain the variability in scores obtained. Research that examines the potential role of a range of child‐related and environmental factors in the same children is needed to determine the predictive role of these factors in speech production outcomes. Whilst the consonant production accuracy was lower for the CWCIs than for their typically hearing peers, there were some similarities suggesting that these children are experiencing similar, but delayed, acquisition of consonant production skills to that of their hearing peers. Whilst several factors are predictive of consonant production accuracy in children with implants, vocabulary diversity and maternal education, an indirect measure of socio‐economic status, were the best combined predictors of consonant production accuracy. Understanding the factors that shape individual differences in CWCI speech production is important for effective clinical decision‐making and intervention planning. The present findings point to two potentially important factors related to speech sound production beyond the duration of robust hearing in CWCI, namely, a lexical diversity and maternal education. This suggests that intervention is likely most efficient that addresses both vocabulary development and speech sound development together. The current findings further suggest the importance of parental involvement and commitment to spoken language development and the importance of receiving early and consistent intervention aimed both at skill development and parental efficacy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Aims: To investigate the developmental trajectory of the rate and perceptual assessment of oral diadochokinesis (DDK) in typically developing children compared with adults. Also to examine the characteristics of DDK productions in children with speech sound disorders (SSD) and the relationship between DDK production and percentage of consonants correct (PCC). Methods & Procedures: Participants were 316 typically developing children and 90 children with SSD from 3 to 9 years old, as well as 20 adults with normal speech. The mono‐, bi‐ and trisyllabic nonsense strings containing Korean tense consonants and the vowel [a] were used for DDK tasks. The number of iterations per s was measured as the DDK rate for each stimulus. The perceptual assessment of DDK productions was also performed for regularity, accuracy and rate. Outcomes & Results: The DDK rates increased throughout childhood, but the oldest children, 9‐year‐olds in the current study, did not achieve adult‐like rates for all mono‐ and trisyllabic strings. Children with SSD also did not show significant differences from typically developing children when the DDK productions were analysed using only accurate tokens. The PCC of children with SSD showed higher correlations with regularity, accuracy and rate of perceptual ratings than the timed DDK rate. Conclusions & Implications: This study highlighted the fact that the comprehensive evaluation of DDK productions may provide even more useful information about children's oral motor skills. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: What is already known on the subject: Rates of DDK reflect the motor skills of the articulatory systems independently of phonological skills; therefore, the tasks are widely used in the diagnostic evaluations of speech disorders in both children and adult populations. However, a substantial number of studies have questioned the validity and usefulness of DDK rates for evaluating speech abilities. Also, the literature suggested that the measure of DDK rate alone does not provide a clear and useful indication of children's oral motor skills. DDK tasks should be analysed in terms of accuracy and consistency as well as rate. What this paper adds to the existing knowledge: The literature reporting normative DDK performance has mainly been based on English speakers. As different consonants have different temporal characteristics, the linguistic and segmental features of DDK tasks can impact the DDK rate. This study established a norm for DDK rate for Korean‐speaking children and investigated the developmental trajectory of DDK performance in typically developing children compared with adults. This study suggested that the comprehensive evaluation of DDK productions may provide even more useful information about children's oral motor skills by examining the characteristics of DDK productions in children with SSD. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?: This study provided normative data of young Korean‐speaking children aged 3–9 years. Normative data in children under 5 years of age are valuable given that the majority of children referred for speech difficulty assessments are between 3 and 5 years of age, but only a few studies have provided the normative data in young children. This study showed that many children could not complete DDK tasks correctly and provided additional support for the notion that other aspects of DDK performance, including accuracy and regularity, may yield more useful diagnostic indications than timed DDK rates alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A phoneme is perceptually the smallest distinct sound unit distinguished among words in a particular language. Every language has its own set of phonemes, and all the words are ordered sequences of phonemes. Therefore, phoneme recognition is essential to automatic speech recognition (ASR) systems. Phonemes of a language can be classified together using a single machine learning (ML) model through the direct classification (also known as the baseline or flat classification) approach. However, it is observed that the performance of such phoneme recognition degrades with the increase in the number of phoneme classes. The challenge is pronounced in languages with a larger number of phoneme classes, like Hindi, which has 48 phonemes. In this paper, we propose a speaker‐independent hierarchical classification approach for 33 Hindi‐Devanagari consonants/phonemes using cepstral features with ML techniques like support vector machine (SVM), random forest (RF) and fully connected deep neural network (DNN). In this hierarchical approach, a given phoneme is classified into successive subgroups until the particular phoneme class is identified. To perform the classification task, a binary or multi‐class classifier is invoked for each internal (non‐leaf) node in the hierarchy tree. Our model identified pairs of Optimal Feature Sets (based on mutual information) and the best suitable ML classifier for each internal decision node in the hierarchy using 10‐fold cross‐validation to help in efficient classification. Our proposed hierarchical model leads to better accuracy and 57% improved performance for phoneme recognition compared with the non‐hierarchical, that is, the direct classification approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Young children clearly know quite a bit about the conventions of written language; for instance, 5‐year‐old children are sensitive to the fact that words tend to include both consonants and vowels, rather than just one or the other. The core theoretical debate lies in whether this understanding of sub‐lexical orthographic regularities predicts children's reading development. To provide empirical data on this question, we examined whether individual differences in sub‐lexical orthographic knowledge were related to gains in word reading over a year. Methods: We measured sub‐lexical orthographic knowledge in Grade 1 by asking children to choose which of two letter‐strings looked most word‐like: one containing vowels and consonants and one containing all consonants or all vowels (e.g., vack vs vgck or uaie, respectively). Children completed control measures of phonological awareness, vocabulary and nonverbal ability in Grade 1. Word reading was measured in both Grades 1 and 2. Results: Linear regression analyses identified a small but significant and unique contribution of sub‐lexical orthographic knowledge in Grade 1 to word reading in Grade 2, after controls for the above measures as well as age, parental education and the auto‐regressor of Grade 1 word reading. Conclusions: This finding suggests a role for knowledge of sub‐lexical orthographic regularities in children's gains in word reading. Highlights: What is already known about this topic Young children's phonological awareness determines their progress in learning to read words.Young children have considerable knowledge of sub‐lexical orthographic regularities, understanding, for instance, that words are composed of both vowels and consonants rather than just one or the other.Whether sub‐lexical orthographic knowledge predicts word reading development has been the source of theoretical debate. What this paper adds Our findings demonstrate that one aspect of young children's sub‐lexical orthographic knowledge is related to gains in their word reading in the early elementary school years. Implications for theory, policy or practice These findings point to awareness of print as a potential factor related to the pace of children's reading development.We speculate that word reading development is driven by children's awareness of both sounds and print because learning to read involves connecting sounds to letters.Our findings provide support for the predictions of the print learning theoretical framework (Conrad & Deacon, 2022). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xitsonga, a southern Bantu language (S53) spoken in South Africa, possesses rich phonological patterns that have been underreported in the literature. This paper aims to provide an overview of the phonology of Xitsonga with a focus on segmental phonology, building up on existing literature. The consonants of Xitsonga show a four‐way laryngeal system with phonation contrast in sonorants and several lateral consonants. These consonants display alternations of post‐nasal hardening, affrication, and lateral‐nasal alternation. Vowel raising and vowel coalescence are also examined. Data with variation from previous studies have been updated to reflect the status of lexical items in contemporary Xitsonga. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background & Aim: To assess consonant proficiency and velopharyngeal function in 10‐year‐old children born with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) within the Scandcleft project. Methods & Procedures: Three parallel group, randomized, clinical trials were undertaken as an international multicentre study by nine cleft teams in five countries. Three different surgical protocols for primary palate repair (Arm B–Lip and soft palate closure at 3–4 months, hard palate closure at 36 months, Arm C–Lip closure at 3–4 months, hard and soft palate closure at 12 months, and Arm D–Lip closure at 3–4 months combined with a single‐layer closure of the hard palate using a vomer flap, soft palate closure at 12 months) were tested against a common procedure (Arm A–Lip and soft palate closure at 3–4 months followed by hard palate closure at 12 months) in the total cohort of 431 children born with a non‐syndromic UCLP. Speech audio and video recordings of 399 children were available and perceptually analysed. Percentage of consonants correct (PCC) from a naming test, an overall rating of velopharyngeal competence (VPC) (VPC‐Rate), and a composite measure (VPC‐Sum) were reported. Outcomes & Results: The mean levels of consonant proficiency (PCC score) in the trial arms were 86–92% and between 58% and 83% of the children had VPC (VPC‐Sum). Only 50–73% of the participants had a consonant proficiency level with their peers. Girls performed better throughout. Long delay of the hard palate repair (Arm B) indicated lower PCC and simultaneous hard and soft palate closure higher (Arm C). However, the proportion of participants with primary VPC (not including velopharyngeal surgeries) was highest in Arm B (68%) and lowest in Arm C (47%). Conclusions & Implications: The speech outcome in terms of PCC and VPC was low across the trials. The different protocols had their pros and cons and there is no obvious evidence to recommend any of the protocols as superior. Aspects other than primary surgical method, such as time after velopharyngeal surgery, surgical experience, hearing level, language difficulties and speech therapy, need to be thoroughly reviewed for a better understanding of what has affected speech outcome at 10 years. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: What is already known on the subject: Speech outcomes at 10 years of age in children treated for UCLP are sparse and contradictory. Previous studies have examined speech outcomes and the relationship with surgical intervention in 5‐year‐olds. What this study adds to the existing knowledge: Speech outcomes based on standardized assessment in a large group of 10‐year‐old children born with UCLP and surgically treated according to different protocols are presented. While speech therapy had been provided, a large proportion of the children across treatment protocols still needed further speech therapy. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?: Aspects other than surgery and speech function might add to the understanding of what affects speech outcome. Effective speech therapy should be available for children in addition to primary surgical repair of the cleft and secondary surgeries if needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Accurate and detailed records of children's speech are a critical component of competent service delivery in speech–language pathology/speech and language therapy (SLP/SLT). Previous research has shown that during speech‐sound acquisition, children gradually learn to produce sounds in adult‐like manners. Continuous rating scales are a way to track this gradual learning. Aims: To examine whether clinical experience affects the ability and willingness to rate children's speech production using continuous rating scales. Methods & Procedures: An online survey was administered to 81 US‐based SLPs/SLTs, binned into more‐ and less‐experienced groups, and 20 non‐SLPs/SLTs. The survey included a speech‐sound rating task in which participants rated the production of place of articulation in children's productions of word‐initial /θ/, /s/, /ʃ/, /d/, /ɡ/, /t/ and /k/ on a nine‐point equally appearing interval scale. We examined the extent to which these were accurate (i.e., the extent to which they matched laboratory measures of production characteristics) and the extent to which the ratings were gradual (i.e., they used the entire rating scales, rather than just the endpoints). Main Contribution: There were no consistent differences between non‐SLPs/SLTs, less‐experienced SLPs/SLTs and more‐experienced SLPs/SLTs in a measure of the accuracy of responses. More consistent differences were found in the extent to which listeners used the endpoints of the scale: greater experience was associated with greater use of the endpoint values. Conclusions & Implications: More‐experienced SLPs/SLTs are less likely to use the entire range of continuous rating scales to rate children's speech accuracy than less‐experienced SLPs/SLTs or clinically untrained listeners. Implications for service delivery are discussed. What this paper addsWhat is already known on the subjectChildren's productions of individual sounds, like /k/, become gradually more adult‐like over the course of development. For a child who has a [t] for /k/ error, this gradual development means that children's productions become progressively less like /t/ and more like /k/ over development. Phonetic transcription does not capture this gradual development. In contrast, studies have shown that continuous ratings of children's speech (such as rating productions on a scale anchored by the text "the 't' sound" at one end and "the 'k' sound" at the other end) can capture this gradual development.What this paper adds to existing knowledgeTo determine continuous ratings are clinically feasible, we must first determine whether clinical experience affects people's use of continuous rating scales to rate children's speech. We conducted an on‐line speech perception experiment in which 81 speech‐language pathologists/speech and language therapists (SLPs/SLTs) and 20 non‐SLPs/SLTs rated 60 productions by children on continuous rating scales. The 60 stimuli included many sounds that had been independently verified to be intermediate productions (i.e., a target /k/ that was neither completely /k/‐like nor completely /t/‐like). Non‐SLPs/SLTs and less‐experienced SLPs/SLTs rated those intermediate sounds with intermediate ratings (i.e., somewhere on the midpoint of a continuous scale). In contrast, more‐experienced SLPs/SLTs were more likely to rate those sounds as instances of endpoints (i.e., as either /k/ or /t/).What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?This finding suggests that clinical experience is paradoxically associated with a reduced tendency to use the entire range of responses on continuous rating scales. This finding suggests that we must better understand the cause of this reduced tendency, so that clinicians at all levels can use continuous rating scales equally effectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dutch is a West‐Germanic language spoken natively by around 24 million speakers. Although studies on typical Dutch speech sound development have been conducted, norms for phonetic and phonological characteristics of typical development in a large sample with a sufficient age range are lacking. Aim: To give a detailed description of the speech sound development of typically developing Dutch‐speaking children from 2 to 7 years. Methods & Procedures: A total of 1503 typically developing children evenly distributed across the age range of 2;0–6;11 years participated in this normative cross‐sectional study. The picture‐naming task of the Computer Articulation Instrument (CAI) was used to collect speech samples. Speech development was described in terms of (1) percentage consonants correct—revised (PCC‐R) and percentage vowels correct (PVC); (2) consonant, vowel and syllabic structure inventories; (3) degrees of complexity (phonemic feature hierarchy); and (4) phonological processes. Outcomes & Results: A two‐way mixed analysis of variance (ANOVA) confirmed a significant increase in the number of PCC‐R and PVC between the ages of 2;0 and 6;11 years (p < 0.001). The consonant inventory was found to be complete at 3;7 years of age for the syllable‐initial consonants, with the exception of the voiced fricatives /v/ and /z/, and the liquid /r/. All syllable‐final consonants were acquired before age 4;4 years. At age 3;4 years, all children had acquired a complete vowel inventory, and at age 4;7 years they produced most syllable structures correctly, albeit that the syllable structure CCVCC was still developing. All phonological contrasts were produced correctly at 3;8 years of age. Children in the younger age groups used more phonological simplification processes than the older children, and by age 4;4 years, all had disappeared, except for the initial cluster reduction from three to two consonants and the final cluster reduction from two to one consonant. Conclusions & Implications: This paper describes a large normative cross‐sectional study of Dutch speech sound development which, in clinical practice, can help Dutch speech–language pathologists to differentiate children with delayed or disordered speech development from typically developing children. What this paper addsWhat is already known on this subjectIn recent years many studies have been conducted worldwide to investigate speech sound development in different languages, including several that explored the typical speech sound development of Dutch‐speaking children, but none of these latter studies explored both phonetic and phonological progress within a comprehensive age range and a large sample that is representative of the Dutch population.What this study adds to existing knowledgeThis study serves to fill this gap by providing normative cross‐sectional results obtained in 1503 typically developing Dutch‐speaking children aged between 2;0 and 6;11 years on informative parameters of speech development: PCC‐R and PVC, consonant, vowel and syllabic structure inventories, degrees of complexity (phonemic feature hierarchy), and phonological simplification processes.What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?The detailed description of typical Dutch speech sound development provides speech–language pathologists with pertinent information to determine whether a child's speech development progresses typically or is delayed or disordered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: A total of 68% of pre‐school children with cleft palate have speech problems requiring speech therapy. There is a lack of access to regular targeted therapy. Parent training leads to positive outcomes in early communication skills in cleft palate and non‐cleft speech disorders. Connected health has been used to address inadequate access to therapy, providing intervention to those who would not otherwise receive therapy. Aims: To evaluate the speech, activity and participation outcomes of Parent Led, Therapist Supervised, Articulation Therapy (PLAT) compared with routine speech therapy intervention in parent–child dyads. Methods & Procedures: A total of 44 children, aged 2.9–7.5 years, were included in a two‐centre, two‐phase randomized controlled trial. Informed consent and assent were obtained. Participants and speech and language therapists (SLTs) were unblinded to the groups. Parents, in the parent‐trained group (n = 23), attended 2 days' training, received a detailed speech therapy programme, and undertook intervention over 12 weeks supported by the cleft specialist SLT using FaceTime and one face‐to‐face session. In the control arm (n = 21), parent–child dyads received six therapy sessions over 12 weeks with a research SLT, comparable with usual care. Speech recordings were undertaken pre‐ and post‐intervention. Percent consonant correct (PCC) was analysed by external SLTs blinded to the time and group. Activity and participation were measured using the Intelligibility in Context Scale (ICS) and Focus on Outcomes for Children Under Six (FOCUS) questionnaire. Outcomes & Results: There was no evidence of an interaction between Time and Group or an overall statistical difference between groups for PCC scores. There was a statistically significant difference over time for both groups (words: p < 0.002; confidence interval (CI) = 9.38–16.27; d = 0.57; sentences: p < 0.002; CI = 16.04–25.97; d = 0.23). Effect sizes were medium for words and small for sentences. For intelligibility and participation, there was no evidence of an interaction between Time and Group or an overall statistical difference between groups. A statistically significant difference over time was found for intelligibility (F = 29.97, d.f. = 1, 42, p < 0.001, 95 % CI = 1.45–3.15 d = 0.46) and for participation (F = 14.19, d.f. = 1, 41, p < 0.001 95% CI = 7.63–25.03; d = 0.36) with FOCUS results indicating clinically meaningful (parent‐led group) and significant (control group) change in participation. Conclusions & Implications: PLAT can be as effective as routine care in changing speech, activity and participation outcomes for children with cleft palate, when supported by a specialist cleft SLT using connected health. What this paper addsWhat is already known on this subjectOver 50% of children with cleft palate require speech therapy. However, there is a lack of timely, accessible speech therapy services in the UK and Ireland. Previous studies have shown that parents can deliver therapy effectively, and that connected health can support the delivery of speech therapy. This study aims to provide evidence that parent‐led therapy with the supervision of a specialist cleft therapist using FaceTime is effective.What this paper adds to existing knowledgeThis randomized controlled trial indicates that parents can be trained to deliver therapy for children with cleft palate speech disorders, under the supervision of an SLT. This approach results in improved speech, activity and participation outcomes similar to routine care.What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?This study indicates that both parent‐led articulation therapy and routine care showed meaningful gains in speech, activity and participation, and that parent‐led articulation therapy when supported by a cleft SLT using connected health could be an additional service delivery model for children with cleft palate speech disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the sound‐symbolic link between voiced obstruents (speech sounds created by obstructing the airflow) present in a brand name and the perceived product/brand attributes. In three studies (two using self‐reported measures and one using an implicit reaction time paradigm), we tested the effect of voiced (b, d, g, z, v) versus voiceless obstruents (p, t, k, s, f) across 25 hypothetical brand names, on the perceived product attributes of harshness (vs. softness). Brand names with voiced (vs. voiceless) obstruents are perceived as harsh (vs. soft/mild). Results are described across two different product categories (e.g., toilet cleaner and skin conditioner), and also within the same product category (e.g., strong vs. light beer and strong vs. mild toilet cleaner). Since sound symbolism is culturally agnostic, brands expanding into international and linguistically different markets can use these insights to create brand names that will have international appeal, and can match the product and/or brand attributes that brands wish to convey to consumers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Previous research has found that high‐frequency energy of speech signals decreased while wearing face masks. However, no study has examined the specific spectral characteristics of fricative consonants and vowels and the perception of clarity of speech in mask wearing. Aims: To investigate acoustic–phonetic characteristics of fricative consonants and vowels and auditory perceptual rating of clarity of speech produced with and without wearing a face mask. Methods & Procedures: A total of 16 healthcare workers read the Rainbow Passage using modal phonation in three conditions: without a face mask, with a standard surgical mask and with a KN95 mask (China GB2626‐2006, a medical respirator with higher barrier level than the standard surgical mask). Speech samples were acoustically analysed for root mean square (RMS) amplitude (ARMS) and spectral moments of four fricatives /f/, /s/, /ʃ/ and /z/; and amplitude of the first three formants (A1, A2 and A3) measured from the reading passage and extracted vowels. Auditory perception of speech clarity was performed. Data were compared across mask and non‐mask conditions using linear mixed models. Outcomes & Results: The ARMS of all included fricatives was significantly lower in surgical mask and KN95 mask compared with non‐mask condition. Centre of gravity of /f/ decreased in both surgical and KN95 mask while other spectral moments did not show systematic significant linear trends across mask conditions. None of the formant amplitude measures was statistically different across conditions. Speech clarity was significantly poorer in both surgical and KN95 mask conditions. Conclusions & Implications: Speech produced while wearing either a surgical mask or KN95 mask was associated with decreased fricative amplitude and poorer speech clarity. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS: What is already known on the subject: Previous studies have shown that the overall spectral levels in high frequency ranges and intelligibility are decreased for speech produced with a face mask. It is unclear how different types of the speech signals that is, fricatives and vowels are presented in speech produced with wearing either a medical surgical or KN95 mask. It is also unclear whether ratings of speech clarity are similar for speech produced with these face masks. What this paper adds to existing knowledge: Speech data collected using a real‐world, clinical and non‐laboratory‐controlled settings showed differences in the amplitude of fricatives and speech clarity ratings between non‐mask and mask‐wearing conditions. Formant amplitude did not show significant differences in mask‐wearing conditions compared with non‐mask. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work?: Wearing a surgical mask or a KN95 mask had different effects on consonants and vowels. It appeared from the findings in this study that these masks only affected fricative consonants and did not affect vowel production. The poorer speech clarity in these mask‐wearing conditions has important implications for speech perception in communication between clinical staff and between medical officers and patients in clinics, and between people in everyday situations. The impact of these masks on speech perception may be more pronounced in people with hearing impairment and communication disorders. In voice evaluation and/or therapy sessions, the effects of wearing a medical mask can occur bidirectionally for both the clinician and the patient. The patient may find it more challenging to understand the speech conveyed by the clinician while the clinician may not perceptually assess patient's speech and voice accurately. Given the significant correlation between clarity ratings and fricative amplitude, improving fricative signals would be useful to improve speech clarity while wearing these medical face masks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The current literature suggests a link between dummy (or pacifier) use and a number of both positive and detrimental consequences. Positive consequences include soothing effect and protection from sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), while negative ones include increased risk of otitis media and dental malformation. However, there is little research surrounding the impact of dummy use on the development of speech sounds. Aims: To investigate whether duration (in number of months) and frequency per day of dummy use have an individual or combined effect on the development of a child's speech, and if so, in what way. Methods & Procedures: A total of 100 British‐English children aged 24–61 months and growing up in the UK were recruited through nurseries, playgroups and by word of mouth. Their parents were asked to complete a questionnaire about the duration and frequency of dummy use and factors known to influence the development of speech. Following this, the children's speech was assessed using the phonology section of the Diagnostic Evaluation of Articulation and Phonology (DEAP). Analysis of the DEAP was conducted to determine the percentage of consonants correct, number of age‐appropriate, delayed and atypical errors. Dummy use and speech outcome measures were then analysed qualitatively and quantitatively using mean and median group comparisons alongside multivariate generalized least squares and generalized negative binomial modelling approaches to test for significant associations. Outcomes & Results: The results showed that the majority of speech outcomes are not significantly associated with dummy use, however measured, in bivariate or multivariate analyses. However, there is a significant association between increased atypical errors and greater frequency of daytime dummy use. This association is strengthened by restricted sampling within the younger members of the sample, with this association not observable within children older than 38 months, the median sample age. Conclusions & Implications: The evidence base for any effects of dummy use on speech is very small. Dummy use may increase the number of atypical speech errors a young child makes. However, only the frequency of daytime use seems relevant, not the duration or night‐time use, and these errors may resolve over time. What this paper addsWhat is already known on this subjectThe use of a dummy with infants in Western countries is comparatively high (between 36‐85%). A number of positive and detrimental consequences of dummy use have been documented in the literature; however, research on the effect of dummy use on speech development is significantly lacking. Past studies have included small sample sizes or used single measures of speech outcomes, which may not be specific enough to reveal how speech may be affected. Many speech and language therapists speculate that the use of a dummy could be contributing to many of the conditions they treat, yet this claim remains largely unsubstantiated.Clinical implications of this studyThe study suggests that only prolonged use of a dummy over several hours and during the day may start to show any impact on speech; even then, professionals need to be aware that the evidence base for any speech effects is very small. Clinicians and other professionals who parents consult on dummy use should make sure to provide both the pros and cons of dummy use, in order to enable parents to make an informed decision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses several papers which adopts different approaches regarding the issue of music in evolution and its relationship to behaviors of species other than humans. In one of the paper researchers explored continuities in musical perception between humans and nonhuman species by investigating whether tamarins are sensitive to a distinction between dissonant and consonant sounds. Another researcher said that while language possesses semanticity, music does not.

Abstract: Oral habits are tongue protrusion in malocclusions, causing deterioration of oral functions necessary for feeding, chewing, swallowing, and vocalization. In order to realize a noninvasive measurement of the habits, we propose and experiment acoustic feature analysis to discriminate tongue habits. Compared to normal speech, tongue‐protruded speech is pronounced between the frontal teeth. The speech is emphasized at a wide‐range band of frequency components due to turbulence, as can be heard in the pronunciation of consonants. In this paper, we confirm these differences in acoustic features, such as zero‐crossing that can capture the characteristics of voiced and unvoiced sounds and Mel Frequency Cepstrum Coefficient (MFCC) that is a filter bank analysis for front‐end processing at speech recognition. We collect samples for that focus on the differences in oral habits of subjects, and significant of acoustic features that measured from the samples are confirmed. Finally, tongue habit discrimination using k‐nearest neighbor algorithm achieved discrimination rate of about 85% to 98% on the databases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, significant momentum has built up in efforts to integrate the social with the cognitive in theoretical models of speech production/processing and phonological representation. While acknowledging these advances, we argue that what limits our ability to elaborate models of processing and representation in which social‐indexical properties of speech are effectively integrated is that we remain some way from fully understanding how these properties are manifested within spoken interaction in the first place. We explore some of these limitations, drawing on data from a study of sociophonetic variability in a population of speakers of Australian English. We discuss issues relating to methods for capturing variability in the realization of vowels and consonants, and we highlight the pivotal role of speech style and the challenges that this raises for models of production and processing. This paper outlines limitations to integrating social meaning into cognitive models of speech production and processing. The authors remind the reader that acoustic space is not the same as articulatory or auditory space and they point to the benefits of using relatively uncommon dynamic methods of acoustic analysis. Further, the authors argue in favor of a more complex and socially‐informed conception of 'style' than is typically used in work on language cognition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper offers a new perspective on Čop's Law and Open Syllable Lengthening, two commonly accepted sound laws that lengthened both consonants and vowels in the Luwic languages. It is proposed that both developments take similar inputs and ultimately yield the same effect: neutralisation of the syllable weight opposition in accented (stressed) syllables. This development is in line with a tendency already observable in Proto‐Anatolian, according to which unstressed syllables were made light, while stressed syllables were made heavy. Thus, it is argued, in the prehistory of the Luwic languages, vocalic length, consonantal length and syllable weight in general became increasingly dependent to the position of the stress and therefore became phonologically neutralised to a certain extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Non-word repetition (NWR) tasks have been found to correlate with language skills and to discriminate between groups of typically developing (TD) children and children with specific language impairment (SLI) across languages. Aims The main aim was to develop an easily-administered NWR screening test that could discriminate between Slovak-speaking TD children and children with SLI. The second aim was to establish if the novel scoring methods for NWR tasks were equally effective at differentiating between the TD versus SLI groups. As Slovak vowels are not reduced in unstressed syllables, it was also sought to establish whether scoring vowels (in addition to the consonants usually assessed in English language tests) would be informative. Methods & Procedures The paper evaluated the performance of a new NWR task for Slovak-speaking children. Study 1 compared the performance of 60 TD children in three age groups: 3-year-olds ( N = 20), 4-your-olds ( N = 20) and 5-year-olds ( N = 20). Five types of scoring methods were examined: whole-item, number of syllables, syllable structure, consonants, and vowels. Study 2 compared performance on the NWR task administered in Study 1 across three groups of child participants: an SLI group ( N = 16), a TD age-matched group ( N = 16), and a TD language-matched group ( N = 14). Outcomes & Results Study 1 found an age effect in the TD sample for three out of five of the scoring methods tested (number of syllables, syllable structure, and consonants). Study 2 showed that all five of the scoring methods discriminated between: (1) the group of children with SLI and the TD language-matched (TDLM) sample and (2) the group of children with SLI and the TD age-matched (TDAM) group. Conclusions & Implications The novel NWR tool reliably differentiated between children with SLI and TD children. Scoring cut-off points which demonstrated high rates of success at verifying true-positives (93.75%) and true-negatives (100%) are provided. The most informative scoring methods for Slavic languages (whole-item scoring and vowels correct) are identified and discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates Spanish dyslexic spelling abilities: specifically, the influence of syllabic linguistic structure (simple vs consonant cluster) on children's spelling performance. Consonant clusters are phonologically complex structures, so it was anticipated that there would be lower spelling performance for these syllabic structures than in simple ones, because of the poor phonological processing of dyslexic children. The participants were 31 dyslexic children, 31 chronological age- matched children and 31 reading level-matched children. A dictation task with words and pseudowords (with and without consonant clusters) was used. Word lexical frequency was controlled. The results show that the spelling of consonant clusters presents difficulties for dyslexic spelling performance despite this structure being orthographically consistent. Dyslexic children present a higher performance difference in items with consonant clusters than in simple items, compared with typically developing children. The work raises questions about the items used for the identification of dyslexic children's difficulties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines three apparent exceptions to general processes in the phonology and morphology of standard Yiddish. These are 1) the resistance of several potentially syllabic final consonants to syllabication; 2) the insertion of an extra consonant [n] in some infinitives; and 3) the absence of some diminutive patterns from some nouns. All three cases are resolved by showing that some phonetically short segments are in fact underlyingly long ones, created by morpheme concatenation. The analysis, conducted within Strict CV (Lowenstamm 1996), thus argues for virtual, or "non surface‐true" length. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study determined if previously reinforced academic responding recurred when alternative responses were differentially reinforced and subsequently placed on extinction, and whether the magnitude of resurgence was related to the rate of differential reinforcement for the alternative behavior. Three kindergarten students read Greek letters aloud as arbitrary consonant–vowel blends. Resurgence was reliably demonstrated within and across participants, and the magnitude of resurgence was related to the prior rate of differential reinforcement of alternative behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on the idiographic relationship between association value and reinforcement value and the nature of meaning. In a recent paper one of the authors argued that an affective dimension of meaningfulness-termed reinforcement value-may be going unnoticed in present studies of verbal learning. The implication was that reinforcement value, which is considered highly amenable to personality study, is relatively independent of the more traditional estimate of meaningfulness association value. An association value measure is ordinarily arrived at nomothetically, by taking the percentage of subjects who proffer an association to a consonant-vowel-consonant trigram, or the average number of words which groups of subjects associate with a neologism or word over a fixed period of time. Though reinforcement value could be treated in a similar way, thus far it has been studied idiographically, each subject being asked to rate a trigram according to its unique likeability from his point of view. Holding association value constant, it has then been demonstrated in severed cross-validations that positively rated verbal material is learned more quickly than negatively rated material.

Which sounds composed the first spoken languages? Archetypal sounds are not phylogenetically or archeologically recoverable, but comparative linguistics and primatology provide an alternative approach. Labial articulations are the most common speech sound, being virtually universal across the world's languages. Of all labials, the plosive 'p' sound, as in 'Pablo Picasso', transcribed /p/, is the most predominant voiceless sound globally and one of the first sounds to emerge in human infant canonical babbling. Global omnipresence and ontogenetic precocity imply that /p/‐like sounds could predate the first major linguistic diversification event(s) in humans. Indeed, great ape vocal data support this view, namely, the only cultural sound shared across all great ape genera is articulatorily homologous to a rolling or trilled /p/, the 'raspberry'. /p/‐like labial sounds represent an 'articulatory attractor' among living hominids and are likely among the oldest phonological features to have ever emerged in linguistic systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Teaching Mandarin as a second language (L2) has become an important profession and an important research area. The acquisition of unaspirated and aspirated consonants in Mandarin has been reported to be rather challenging for L2 learners. Objectives: In the current study, a 3‐D airflow model was integrated into the virtual talking head for audiovisual pronunciation training in these Mandarin consonants. Methods: Using the eye‐tracking technique, Experiment 1 investigated L2 learners' general acceptance and gauged attention distribution online while learning with the system. To further compare training efficacy, learning outcomes were evaluated by randomly dividing Japanese learners of Mandarin into different training groups using the 3‐D tutor with and without an airflow model, respectively, in Experiment 2. Results and Conclusions: Eye‐tracking results showed that the talking head was well accepted, and was successful in directing L2 learners' attention to the visual modality of the airflow model marking the contrast in aspiration. Furthermore, the additional visual cue of the airflow model helped enhance their production of the aspirated Mandarin stops. Moreover, this computer‐assisted training approach was shown to be robust as the advantage of training with an airflow model can be generalized to novel syllables with a change of tones or rimes. Lay Description: Using a virtual talking head has the benefit of providing additional visual cues to facilitate L2 pronunciation learning.The virtual 3‐D talking head is well accepted by L2 learners as suggested by eye‐tracking data.The current 3‐D articulatory model with aspiratory animations provides an ideal pronunciation training method for L2 learners of Mandarin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Speaking depends on refined control of jaw opening and closing movements. The medial pterygoid muscle (MPT), involved in jaw closing, and the lateral pterygoid muscle (LPT), involved in jaw opening, are two key mandibular muscles in mastication and are likely to be recruited for controlled movements in speech. Objectives: Three hypotheses were investigated, that during speech the MPT and LPT: (1) were both active, (2) but exhibited different patterns of activity, (3) which fluctuated with the vowels and consonants in speech. Methods: Intramuscular EMG recordings were made from the right inferior head of the LPT and/or the right MPT in five participants during production of 40 target nonsense words (NWs) consisting of three syllables in the form /V1C1V2 C2ə/ (V = vowel; C = consonant; ə = unstressed, reduced vowel), spoken by each participant 10 times per NW; analysis focussed on the target syllable, C1V2. Results: Both MPT and LPT exhibited robust increases in EMG activity during utterance of most NWs, relative to rest. Peak LPT activation was time‐locked to the final part of the target consonant (C1) interval when the jaw begins opening for the target vowel (V2), whereas peak MPT activation occurred around the temporal midpoint of V2, when the jaw begins closing for C2. EMG amplitude peaks differed in magnitude between "high" vowels, i.e., for which the tongue/jaw are high (e.g., in SEEK), and "low" vowels, i.e., for which the tongue/jaw are low (e.g., in SOCK). Conclusions: These novel findings suggest a key role for the LPT and MPT in the fine control of speech production. They imply that speech may impose major synergistic demands on the activities of the MPT and the LPT, and thereby provide insights into the possible interactions between speech activities and orofacial activities (e.g. mastication) and conditions (e.g. Temporomandibular Disorders) that involve the masticatory muscles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uspanteko is an endangered Mayan language spoken by up to 6000 people in the Guatemalan highlands. We provide an overview of the phonetics and phonology of Uspanteko, focussing on phenomena which are common in Mayan languages and/or typologically interesting. These include glottalised consonants (ejectives, implosives, and glottal stop), uvular consonants, vowel length contrasts, syllable structure, stress, and lexical tone. Tone is unusual among Mayan languages, especially in Guatemala, and the phonetic description here complements the small handful of existing descriptions of tone in Uspanteko and within the Mayan family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports an experiment in which 24 two-word phrases (collocations and compounds) were dictated to 38 adult EFL students who were then asked to discriminate between ones which manifest consonant repetition across the two words (e.g. priva te pro per ty; im porta nt poi nt,) and ones which do not (e.g. private collection; important thing). The students' ability to recall the phrases was subsequently gauged in unannounced tests. Phrases that were judged by the students to meet the criterion (i.e. +consonant repetition) were significantly better recalled in the post-test regardless of whether their judgement was correct. The finding that a discrimination activity results in superior recall of items that are thought to display a stipulated trait over those that do not is relevant for the experimental study of memory and can be exploited in second language instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Purpose: To propose a new method for the recovery of combined in‐plane‐ and multi‐band (MB)‐accelerated diffusion MRI data. Methods: Combining MB acceleration with in‐plane acceleration is crucial to improve the time efficiency of high (angular and spatial) resolution diffusion scans. However, as the MB factor and in‐plane acceleration increase, the reconstruction becomes challenging due to the heavy aliasing. The new reconstruction utilizes an additional q‐space prior to constrain the recovery, which is derived from the previously proposed qModeL framework. Specifically, the qModeL prior provides a pre‐learned representation of the diffusion signal space to which the measured data belongs. We show that the pre‐learned q‐space prior along with a model‐based iterative reconstruction that accommodate multi‐band unaliasing, can efficiently reconstruct the in‐plane‐ and MB‐accelerated data. The power of joint reconstruction is maximally utilized by using an incoherent under‐sampling pattern in the k‐q domain. We tested the proposed method on single‐ and multi‐shell data, with high/low angular resolution, high/low spatial resolution, healthy/abnormal tissues, and 3T/7T field strengths. Furthermore, the learning is extended to the spherical harmonic basis, to provide a rotational invariant learning framework. Results: The qModeL joint reconstruction is shown to simultaneously unalias and jointly recover DWIs with reasonable accuracy in all the cases studied. The reconstruction error from 18‐fold accelerated multi‐shell datasets was <3%. The microstructural maps derived from the accelerated acquisitions also exhibit reasonable accuracy for both healthy and abnormal tissues. The deep learning (DL)‐enabled reconstructions are comparable to those derived using traditional methods. Conclusion: qModeL enables the joint recovery of combined in‐plane‐ and MB‐accelerated dMRI utilizing DL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Hindi consonant inventory, which includes the cross‐linguistically rare retroflex place of articulation and four‐way laryngeal contrasts, is known to pose difficulties for native English speakers. Hindi language textbooks address this challenge, in part, by providing various articulatory and acoustic descriptions of Hindi consonants, typically referencing their similarity to and differences from English consonants. Here, we investigate the perception of 20 Hindi consonants by native English speakers with no prior Hindi language experience. We conducted two consonant perception studies: one in which participants identified Hindi consonants with English consonant labels, and one in which they determined whether pairs of Hindi consonants were the same or different. In this way, we were able to identify the consonants—and contrasts—that may pose the greatest difficulty for learners, and also to make recommendations regarding the articulatory and acoustic description of Hindi consonants for English‐speaking learners. The Challenge: Though Hindi is recognized as a "critical language", Hindi language teaching has received little attention by researchers, in particular, in the area of pronunciation. Hindi's sizeable consonant inventory includes many sounds unfamiliar to native English speakers. How do they initially perceive Hindi consonants? Which consonants do they confuse with each other? What do these findings suggest concerning the most effective ways to present Hindi consonants to learners? [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spontaneous child language data are often extremely variable: the same child may utter words in many different ways even during the same session (within child variation) and children often differ in the way they produce particular structures (across child variation), leading to different learning paths for different children. This paper focuses on across child variation and discusses three phenomena, previously studied in isolation: the acquisition of complex word-initial clusters, the acquisition of word-final consonant clusters and the acquisition of manner of articulation features. After briefly summarizing the main findings reported in previous research based on the Dutch CLPF (Clara Levelt - Paula Fikkert) corpus of longitudinal language production data of twelve monolingual Dutch children, we report on our investigation of the various developmental patterns regarding the three phenomena, arguing that the different learning paths are at least in part dependent on each other and reveal the use of different learning strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Imprecise articulation has a negative impact on speech intelligibility. Therefore, treatment of articulation is clinically relevant in patients with dysarthria. In order to be effective and according to the principles of motor learning, articulation therapy needs to be intensive, well organized, with adequate feedback and requires frequent practice. Aims: The aims of this pilot study are (1) to evaluate the feasibility of a virtual articulation therapy (VAT) to guide patients with dysarthria through a boost articulation therapy (BArT) program; (2) to evaluate the acousticmodels' performance used for automatic phonological error detection; and (3) to validate the system by end-users from their perspective. Methods & Procedures: The VAT provides an extensive and well-structured package of exercises with visual and auditory modelling and adequate feedback on the utterances. The tool incorporates automatedmethods to detect phonological errors, which are specifically designed to analyse Dutch speech production. A total of 14 subjects with dysarthria evaluated the acceptability, usability and user interaction with the VAT based on two completed therapy sessions using a self-designed questionnaire. Outcomes & Results: In general, participants were positive about the new computer-based therapy approach. The algorithm performance for phonological error detection shows it to be accurate, which contributes to adequate feedback of utterance production. The results of the study indicate that the VAT has a userfriendly interface that can be used independently by patientswith dysarthriawho have sufficient cognitive, linguistic, motoric and sensory skills to benefit from speech therapy. Recommendations were given by the end-users to further optimize the program and to ensure user engagement. Conclusions&Implications: The initial implementation of an automatic BArT shows it to be feasible and well accepted by end-users. The tool is an appropriate solution to increase the frequency and intensity of articulation training that supports traditional methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sound symbolism is a non‐arbitrary correspondence between sound and meaning. The majority of studies on sound symbolism have focused on consonants and vowels, and the sound‐symbolic properties of suprasegmentals, particularly phonation types, have been largely neglected. This study examines the size and shape symbolism of four phonation types: modal and creaky voices, falsetto, and whisper. Japanese speakers heard 12 novel words (e.g., /íbi/, /ápa/) pronounced with the four types of phonation and rated the size and roundedness/pointedness each of the 48 stimuli seemed to represent on seven‐point scales. The results showed that phonation types as well as consonantal and vocalic features influenced the ratings. Creaky voice was associated with larger and more pointed images than modal voice, which was in turn associated with larger and more pointed images than whisper. Falsetto was also associated with roundedness but not with smallness. These results shed new light on the acoustic approaches to sound symbolism and suggest the significance of phonation types and other suprasegmental features in the phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In speech synthesis by rule, various acoustic parameters are determined by rules from the phonetic transcription and then the speech is synthesized. In the past, the synthesis rules have been constructed by an expert on speech synthesis, iterating trials and errors. To construct sophisticated rules efficiently, as well as to improve and maintain those rules, it will be useful to use a computer to support the expert's effort. For this purpose, several functions are required. Among those, this paper discusses especially the method which automatically extracts the synthesis rules from a large number of speech data by inductive inference. In the method, the acoustic parameters, which are determined by the already prepared synthesis rules, are compared with those of the actual speech uttered by a human subject and the difference is described in the form of a "comparison example." Then inductive inference is performed. In the comparison example, the phonetic environment for the speech data also is described. The concept hierarchy for the attributes concerning the environment is prespecified as the "expert knowledge of phonology," and is utilized in the inductive inference. Especially for consonants, more than one hierarchical structure is considered, among which the most favorable is employed. The synthesis rules actually were extracted for the CV syllable duration in the word, indicating the effectiveness of the proposed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new method is developed for measuring the efficiency of a system of phonemes for communication in noise. This measure is called the code score, which increases with increasing efficiency. An experiment where pairs of English subjects attempted to communicate in noise is reported, and analysis of this experiment shows that subjects are able to adjust the statistical distribution of the consonants they use in such a way as to render this system more appropriate for use in a noisy channel; moreover, infrequent words, monosyllabic words and nouns used by subjects in this experiment show higher code scores than frequent words, polysyllabic words and function words. There is a practice effect whereby selection of vocabulary appears chiefly responsible for the results in the early part of the experiment, and gross frequency of usage appears more important in the later part of the experiment. In choosing their vocabulary, subjects appear sensitive to the initial consonants of words, and not to the final consonants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many children with speech sound disorders cannot pronounce the sibilant consonants correctly. We have developed a serious game, which is controlled by the children's voices in real time, with the purpose of helping children on practicing the production of European Portuguese (EP) sibilant consonants. For this, the game uses a sibilant consonant classifier. Since the game does not require any type of adult supervision, children can practice producing these sounds more often, which may lead to faster improvements of their speech. Recently, the use of deep neural networks has given considerable improvements in the classification of a variety of use cases, from image classification to speech and language processing. Here, we propose to use deep convolutional neural networks to classify sibilant phonemes of EP in our serious game for speech and language therapy. We compared the performance of several different artificial neural networks that used Mel frequency cepstral coefficients or log Mel filterbanks. Our best deep learning model achieves classification scores of 95.48% using a 2D convolutional model with log Mel filterbanks as input features. Such results are then further improved for specific classes with simple binary classifiers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent evidence suggests that during the first year of life, a preference for consonant information during lexical processing (consonant bias) emerges, at least for some languages like French. Our study investigated the factors involved in this emergence as well as the developmental consequences for variation in consonant bias emergence. In a series of experiments, we measured 5‐, 8‐, and 11‐month‐old French‐learning infants orientation times to a consonant or vowel mispronunciation of their own name, which is one of the few word forms familiar to infants at this young age. Both 5‐ and 8‐month‐olds oriented longer to vowel mispronunciations, but 11‐month‐olds showed a different pattern, initially orienting longer to consonant mispronunciations. We interpret these results as further evidence of an initial vowel bias, with consonant bias emergence by 11 months. Neither acoustic‐phonetic nor lexical factors predicted preferences in 8‐ and 11‐month‐olds. Finally, counter to our predictions, a vowel bias at the time of test for 11‐month‐olds was related to later productive vocabulary outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Statistical learning is often taken to lie at the heart of many cognitive tasks, including the acquisition of language. One particular task in which probabilistic models have achieved considerable success is the segmentation of speech into words. However, these models have mostly been tested against English data, and as a result little is known about how a statistical learning mechanism copes with input regularities that arise from the structural properties of different languages. This study focuses on statistical word segmentation in Arabic, a Semitic language in which words are built around consonantal roots. We hypothesize that segmentation in such languages is facilitated by tracking consonant distributions independently from intervening vowels. Previous studies have shown that human learners can track consonant probabilities across intervening vowels in artificial languages, but it is unknown to what extent this ability would be beneficial in the segmentation of natural language. We assessed the performance of a Bayesian segmentation model on English and Arabic, comparing consonant‐only representations with full representations. In addition, we examined to what extent structurally different proto‐lexicons reflect adult language. The results suggest that for a child learning a Semitic language, separating consonants from vowels is beneficial for segmentation. These findings indicate that probabilistic models require appropriate linguistic representations in order to effectively meet the challenges of language acquisition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Background: Differing results regarding articulation skills in young children with cleft palate (CP) have been reported and often interpreted as a consequence of different surgical protocols. Aims: To assess the influence of different timing of hard palate closure in a two‐stage procedure on articulation skills in 3‐year‐olds born with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP). Secondary aims were to compare results with peers without CP, and to investigate if there are gender differences in articulation skills. Furthermore, burden of treatment was to be estimated in terms of secondary surgery, hearing and speech therapy. Methods & Procedures: A randomized controlled trial (RCT). Early hard palate closure (EHPC) at 12 months versus late hard palate closure (LHPC) at 36 months in a two‐stage procedure was tested in a cohort of 126 Danish‐speaking children born with non‐syndromic UCLP. All participants had the lip and soft palate closed around 4 months of age. Audio and video recordings of a naming test were available from 113 children (32 girls and 81 boys) and were transcribed phonetically. Recordings were obtained prior to hard palate closure in the LHPC group. The main outcome measures were percentage consonants correct adjusted (PCC‐A) and consonant errors from blinded assessments. Results from 36 Danish‐speaking children without CP obtained previously by Willadsen in 2012 were used for comparison. Outcomes & Results: Children with EHPC produced significantly more target consonants correctly (83%) than children with LHPC (48%; p < .001). In addition, children with LHPC produced significantly more active cleft speech characteristics than children with EHPC (p < .001). Boys achieved significantly lower PCC‐A scores than girls (p = .04) and produced significantly more consonant errors than girls (p = .02). No significant differences were found between groups regarding burden of treatment. The control group performed significantly better than the EHPC and LHPC groups on all compared variables. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background In the last decade, a large number of children with cleft lip and palate have been adopted to Sweden. A majority of the children were born in China and they usually arrive in Sweden with an unoperated palate. There is currently a lack of knowledge regarding speech and articulation development in this group of children, who also have to deal with a late first language switch. Aims To study consonant proficiency in 3-year-old internationally adopted children with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP) compared with peers with UCLP born in Sweden. Also to study the type and frequency of consonant errors and to perceptually compare velopharyngeal competence between the groups. Methods & Procedures Thirty-two children born between 2006 and 2010 with UCLP participated in the study-14 adopted from China and 18 children born in Sweden. Both groups were treated by the same cleft palate team. Audio recordings at 3 years of age were perceptually analysed by blinded listeners. Consonant proficiency was measured via per cent consonants correct adjusted for age (PCC-A), per cent correct manners (PCM) and per cent correct places (PCP). The prevalence of audible nasal air leakage and velopharyngeal competence were judged and compared between groups. The type and frequencies of consonant errors related to place and manner of articulation were also analysed. Outcomes & Results The internationally adopted children had significantly fewer correct consonants compared with the Swedish-born children. This was true for PCC-A, PCP and PCM. This group also had significantly higher prevalence of glottal stops/fricatives and deleted target consonants more often. Also the internationally adopted children had a higher prevalence of incompetent velopharyngeal function. The only outcome variable with similar results in the groups was audible nasal air leakage. Conclusions & Implications The present study indicated that there were significant differences regarding consonant proficiency and velopharyngeal competence between internationally adopted children with a UCLP and their Swedish-born peers with UCLP at the age of 3 years. Internationally adopted children with UCLP should be considered an at risk group for a higher prevalence of speech difficulties than non-adoptees. Thus, it is particularly important to follow this group of children over time. Longitudinal studies of speech and language development in internationally adopted children with UCLP are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author surveys 2 major phenomena in Armenian phonology. The first is schwa epenthesis in Western Armenian, which is known to break up the impressive consonant clusters of the language. Before looking at the synchronically epenthetic schwas in Western Armenian, it is important to first distinguish schwas that are unambiguously part of lexical representations then to recognize schwas that have led, over time, to different allomorphs. A fourth category is left to explain: schwas that break up attested clusters, but only in derived morphological environments. After listing known facts about the syllabic nature of Armenian, the author shows that motivated prosodic specifications can account for the derived environment schwas (simplifying somewhat the previous account by Vaux, ). The second phonological phenomenon surveyed is the voicing and aspiration patterns found in Armenian dialects. While the patterns neatly divide the linguistic domain into seven groups, the standard classifications rely on present-tense formation as a primary divider between larger groups of dialects. The author, however, highlights that the phonological division between voicing and aspiration patterns should be considered a more fundamental one, once textbook notions of geolinguistics are applied to reduce the 7-way division to a more ancient 3-way division of dialects. Indeed, sound change is a more common type of innovation used for grouping related languages and dialects, and the territorial divisions thus obtained correspond to more ancient political divisions than the morphological ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explores Finnish children's word-level spelling by applying a linguistically based multilayered word structure model for assessing spelling performance. The model contributes to the analytical qualitative assessment approach in order to identify children's spelling performance for enhancing writing skills. The children ( N = 105) participated in two dictation assessments at the end of their first and second grades. The results indicate that long consonants and consonant sequences are the most problematic structures in both the first and second grades. The less-advanced spellers were significantly weaker than others also in coding the overall syllable number, heavy unstressed syllables and long vowels in the first grade. In the second grade, they still had more difficulties in spelling heavy unstressed syllables and long quantities of vowels and consonants. The multilayered word structure model seems to give more information about the quality of spelling than error-based holistic analyses. The model is applicable for other shallow orthographies as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background In recent years, analyses of cleft palate speech based on phonetic transcriptions have become common. However, the results vary considerably among different studies. It cannot be excluded that differences in assessment methodology, including the recording medium, influence the results. Aims To compare phonetic transcriptions from audio and audio/video recordings of cleft palate speech by means of outcomes of per cent correct consonants (PCC) and differences in consonant transcriptions. Methods & Procedures Thirty-two 3-year-olds born with cleft palate were audio and audio/video recorded while performing a single-word test by picture naming. The recordings were transcribed according to the International Phonetic Alphabet. The transcriptions from the audio and the audio/video recordings were analysed with regard to PCC, differences in the use of phonetic consonant symbols and the use of diacritics. Outcomes & Results PCC was higher when the calculation was based on transcriptions from audio recordings than when based on audio/video recordings. No such differences were seen when age-appropriate consonant processes were scored as correct. Consonants were not excluded as often in the transcriptions from audio/video recordings as they were in the transcriptions from audio recordings, and more target consonants were transcribed as dental/alveolar in the transcriptions from audio/video recordings and palatal/velar/uvular in the transcriptions from audio recordings than vice versa. Further, interdental articulation, linguolabial articulation and audible nasal air leakage were more common in the transcriptions from audio/video recordings than in those from audio recordings. All these differences were statistically significant. Conclusions & Implications Phonetic transcription is influenced to some extent by visual cues. However, as long as age-appropriate articulatory and phonological simplification processes are scored as correct when evaluating consonant production in the speech of young children born with cleft palate using phonetic transcription, the recording medium does not seem to affect the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pinyin is a sound-annotating system for Chinese characters using Roman letters. Teaching and learning Pinyin has been an important educational practice in Mainland China for native Chinese children, and it is also typically taught to beginning learners of Chinese as a foreign/second language in tertiary-level classrooms. However, whether it should be taught to nonnative children who are studying Chinese as a second language has been controversial. This study examined the roles of Pinyin skill in Chinese-English biliteracy learning among a group of second-grade learners in a Chinese immersion program across one academic year and found that Pinyin facilitates subsequent Chinese word reading at no cost to students' English literacy learning. Results are discussed in the context of learning Chinese as a nonnative language among young learners in school settings. Implications for teaching Chinese reading, curriculum, and material design, especially for Chinese immersion programs, are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

By the end of their first year of life, infants' representations of familiar words contain phonetic detail; yet little is known about the nature of these representations at the very beginning of word learning. Bouchon et al. () showed that French-learning 5-month-olds could detect a vowel change in their own name and not a consonant change, but also that infants reacted to the acoustic distance between vowels. Here, we tested British English-learning 5-month-olds in a similar study to examine whether the acoustic/phonological characteristics of the native language shape the nature of the acoustic/phonetic cues that infants pay attention to. In the first experiment, British English-learning infants failed to recognize their own name compared to a mispronunciation of initial consonant (e.g., Molly versus Nolly) or vowel (e.g., April versus Ipril). Yet in the second experiment, they did so when the contrasted name was phonetically dissimilar (e.g., Sophie versus Amber). Differences in phoneme category (stops versus continuants) between the correct consonant versus the incorrect one significantly predicted infants' own name recognition in the first experiment. Altogether, these data suggest that infants might enter into a phonetic mode of processing through different paths depending on the acoustic characteristics of their native language. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Although verbal imitation can provide a valuable window into the developing language abilities of toddlers, some toddlers find verbal imitation challenging and will not comply with tests that involve elicited verbal imitation. The characteristics of stimuli that are offered to toddlers for imitation may influence how easy or hard it is for them to imitate. This study presents a new test of elicited imitation-the Monosyllable Imitation Test for Toddlers (MITT)-comprising stimuli of varying characteristics and test features designed to optimize compliance. Aims To investigate whether the stimulus characteristics of neighbourhood density and consonant complexity have independent and/or convergent influences on imitation accuracy; and to examine non-compliance rates and diagnostic accuracy of the MITT and an existing test, the Test of Early Nonword Repetition (TENR) (Stokes and Klee 2009a). Methods & Procedures Fifty-two toddlers (25-35 months) participated. Twenty-six had typically developing language (TDs) and 26 were defined as late talkers (LTs) based on parent-reported vocabulary. The MITT stimuli were created by manipulating both neighbourhood density (dense or sparse) and consonant complexity (early- or late-developing initial consonant). The MITT was designed to maximize compliance by: (1) using eight monosyllabic stimuli, (2) providing three exposures to stimuli and (3) embedding imitation in a motivating context: a computer animation with reasons for imitation. Outcomes & Results Stimulus characteristics influenced imitation accuracy in TDs and LTs. For TDs, neighbourhood density had an independent influence, whereas for LTs consonant complexity had an independent influence. These characteristics also had convergent influences. For TDs, stimuli were all equally easy to imitate, except those that were both sparse and contained a late-developing consonant which were harder to imitate. For LTs, stimuli that were both dense and contained an early-developing consonant were easier to imitate than any other stimuli. Two LTs and no TDs were non-compliant with the MITT. With the TENR, five LTs and two TDs were non-compliant. The MITT and TENR yielded similar levels of diagnostic sensitivity, but the TENR offered higher specificity rates. Subsets of stimuli from the MITT and the TENR also showed diagnostic promise when explored post-hoc. Conclusions & Implications Stimulus characteristics converge to influence imitation accuracy in both TD and LT toddlers and therefore should be considered when designing stimuli. The MITT resulted in better compliance than the TENR, but the TENR offered higher specificity. Insights about late talking, elicited imitation and speech production capabilities are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2011, van Dijck and Fias described a positional SNARC (Spatial-Numerical Association of Response Codes) effect: the SPoARC (Spatial-Positional Association of Response Codes). To-be-remembered items (e.g., numbers, words) presented centrally on a screen seemed to acquire a left-to-right spatial dimension. If confirmed, this spatialization could be crucial for immediate memory theories. However, given the intricate links between visual and spatial dimensions, this effect could be due to the visual presentation (on a computer screen), which could have probed the left-to-right direction of reading/writing. To allow a generalization of this effect, we adapted van Dijck and Fias's (2011) task using an auditory version of Sternberg's paradigm. Lists of five consonants were auditorily presented at a rate of 3 s/item. A SPoARC effect was observed. The consequences are discussed first from an immediate memory perspective, putting forward the view that order could be coded through spatialization, and then in terms of similarities between SPoARC and SNARC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Arabic, a Semitic language of the Afro-Asiatic variety, has a rich consonant inventory. Previous studies on Arabic phonological acquisition have focused primarily on dialects in Jordan and Egypt. Because Arabic varies considerably across regions, information is also needed for other dialects. Aims To determine acquisition benchmarks for singleton consonants for Kuwaiti Arabic-speaking 4-year-olds. Methods & Procedures Participants were 80 monolingual Kuwaiti Arabic-speaking children divided into two age groups: 46-54 and 55-62 months. Post-hoc, eight children were identified as possibly at risk for protracted phonological development. A native Kuwaiti Arabic speaker audio-recorded and transcribed single-word speech samples (88 words) that tested consonants across word positions within a variety of word lengths and structures. Transcription reliability (point-to-point) was 95% amongst the authors, and 87% with an external consultant. Three acquisition levels were designated that indicated the proportion of children with no mismatches ('errors') for a given consonant: 90%+ of children, 75-89%, fewer than 75%. Mismatch patterns were described in terms of a phonological feature framework previously described in the literature. Outcomes & Results The Kuwaiti 4-year-olds produced many singleton consonants accurately, including pharyngeals and uvulars. Although the older age group had fewer manner and laryngeal mismatches than the younger age group, consonants still developing at age 5 included coronal fricatives and affricates, trilled /r/ and some uvularized consonants ('emphatics'). The possible at-risk group showed mastery of fewer consonants than the other children. By feature category, place mismatches were the most common, primarily de-emphasis and lack of contrast for [coronal, grooved] (distinguishing alveolar from interdental fricatives). Manner mismatches were next most common: the most frequent substitutions were [+lateral] [l] or other rhotics for /r/, and stops for fricatives. Laryngeal mismatches were few, and involved partial or full devoicing. Group differences generally reflected proportions of mismatches rather than types. Conclusions & Implications Compared with studies for Jordanian and Egyptian Arabic, Kuwaiti 4-year-olds showed a somewhat more advanced consonant inventory than same age peers, especially with respect to uvulars, pharyngeals and uvularized (emphatic) consonants. Similar to the other studies, consonant categories yet to master were: [+trilled] /r/, coronal fricative feature [grooved], [+voiced] fricatives /ʕ, z/ and the affricate /d͡͡ʒ/ and some emphatics. Common mismatch patterns generally accorded with previous studies. This study provides criterion reference benchmarks for Kuwaiti Arabic consonant singleton acquisition in 4-year-olds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Native English speakers experience difficulty acquiring Arabic emphatic consonants. Arabic language textbooks have suggested that learners focus on adjacent vowels for cues to these consonants; however, the utility of such a strategy has not been empirically tested. This study investigated the perception of Arabic emphatic-plain contrasts by means of cross-language vowel identification and perceptual discrimination tasks. It was found that native English speakers relied more on following vowels than on the consonants themselves when discriminating Arabic emphatic and plain consonants, and that their accuracy was greatest when the following vowel was /æ/, followed by /u/ and /i/. The cross-language vowel identification task revealed that Arabic /æ/ was identified as a systematically different English vowel (/ɑ/) when following emphatics than when following plain consonants (/æ/), while Arabic /i/ and /u/ failed to exhibit a differential identification pattern. Together these findings indicate that following vowel quality moderates Arabic emphatic consonant perception by English speakers, who may exploit their sensitivity to the English /ɑ/-/æ/ contrast to perceive emphatic-plain contrasts in the context of Arabic /æ/. However, such a strategy is less likely to be successful when the following vowel is /i/ or /u/. Implications and pedagogical suggestions for the teaching of Arabic to native speakers of English are offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]