Based on a model developed by Brown and Levinson (1978), this thesis examines one feature underlying appropriate language use--politeness--as it affects the discourse of native English speakers in three situations. The three situations and speakers involved are: (1) British speakers in a British public library, (2) American speakers in an American…

Evidence of semantically based orderings of phrasal coordinations in child speech is explored. Speech samples from two children are analyzed to show that such sequences occur frequently, are internally consistent, and are part of children's active repertoire of referential and expressive acts at an early age. The samples were obtained from one…

The Southwest Regional Laboratory (SWRL) communication skills lexicon, compiled for use in the development of elementary instruction, is a set of words used by children between kindergarten and sixth grade. Although the lexicon was originally derived from the most comprehensive and up-to-date sources available, the major studies on which the…

This study investigated whether or not selected vocal cues emitted by a counselee influence the perception of her personality by observing counselors. A significant difference was found among selected filled and unfilled pauses in the perception of self-disclosure but not in the perception of genuiness or anxiety. (Author)

The 25 communities that were chosen for the Indiana portion of the Linguistic Atlas of the United States project were selected in part to provide coverage of an area but in some instances because of their early settlement, location on a migration route, or geographical features. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire which contained…

Comparative judgments of vocal quality, speech fluency, and confidence of black and white speakers in southern universities were tested to determine the interrelationships of (1) perception of vocal quality and judgment of confidence in the voice, (2) quality and fluency, and (3) speech fluency and judgment of confidence, and to ascertain the…

Current thinking of specialists in the study of language learning provides the basis of this book. The 12 chapters of the book and their authors are as follows: 1. Introduction--Charles A. Ferguson; 2. The Acquisition of Language in Infant and Child--Martin D. S. Braine; 3. Development of Native Language Skills beyond the Early Years--John B.…

A number of studies are reviewed for the purpose of identifying the ways in which non-content aspects of speech elicit personality impressions. (RM)

This articles discusses intonation in terms of different kinds of contours and demonstrates the inadequacy of any approach to English intonation which treats contours as sequences of significant pitch levels. (NCR)

Defines the rhetorical impreative (i.e. you know?, you see?, okay) as a "non-ah" type of speech disturbance wherein the rhetorical nature of the inherent questions neither seeks nor desires a response. Relates anxiety and floor control to rhetorical interrogatives in experimental testing conditions. (MH)

The third person singular pronouns are either neuter or sex linked even in situations where they should be neutral. When the sex is unknown then a substitute, for example "heesh" should be used. The present paper examines several of these awkward words and makes recommendations for substitutes. (Author)

Evolutionary changes in French pronunciation have necessitated changes in phonetic representation. The new articulatory phenomena involve modifications in syllabic structure and in consonant/vowel relationship. (Text is in French.) (DB)

Tests the hypothesis that the extent to which the durations of pauses (silences within the utterances of a single speaker) and switching pauses (silences between the utterances of 2 speakers) in the speech of children in conversation become similar (i.e., exhibit conversational congruence) is positively related to age. (BRT)