Data on the acquisition of lexical tone were collected from 17 Mandarin-speaking children. Among other results, it was found that: (1) tone is acquired relatively quickly; (2) mastery of tones occurs well before mastery of segmentals; and (3) Mandarin high-level and falling tones are acquired before rising and dipping tones. (Author/RM)

Investigation of the communicative functions of pitch direction and range in one-year-olds (N=2) indicated that use of pitch among infants may be related to a period where communicative intentions are clearly defined, but language is not yet available. A higher pitch was observed among infants who made repeated requests for objects as opposed to…

Foreign language teachers must be able to correct pronunciation errors that go beyond the level of the segmental phoneme. Extending a technique used with students, it was found that teachers can deal with a number of problems more efficiently if they separately consider single features or aspects of the continuum. (Author/KM)

This paper discusses the phonology-syntax interface in Akan, a language spoken in Ghana and the Cote d'Ivoire, describing a medium of exchange between phonology and syntax. Studies in lexical phonology have distinguished two levels in phonology--lexical and post-lexical--based on how and where phonological rules apply, although some phonological…

A literary style intent on relating the written word to sound via word length, rhythm, stress, and intonation, has produced a new phonic literature related to the needs of the present. (MM)

Male and females listeners rated 21 young female voices on seven scales representing unique vocal features. Voices were described as "passive", or traditionally female, and "active," characterized as "lively,""colorful," and "sexy." Females found active characteristics more salient; males preferred the passive characteristics. Implications for…

The results of three experiments investigating where native speakers have a morpheme boundary between stems and word-final English derivational suffixes are reported. The way speakers organize phonological data is demonstrated. The results challenge the generative phonological hypothesis of maximal generalization and assumptions concerning…

Indicates that native and nonnative speakers alike can make use of intonation if they explicitly listen for it, although prosodic features are generally ignored when other cues (semantic and pragmatic) are available. (Author/RL)

Reviews theoretical models which can serve to analyze speech, especially on the level of "phonostylistics." (AM)

A study of the relationship between intonation and syntax must consider communication as a whole, rather than isolated sentences. This study examines the role of the speakers in communication, bilateral and unilateral communication, and some pedagogical implications of this study. (Text is in French.) (AM)

In foreign language classes, intonation is taught using as a basis for comparison the intonation of the standard dialect of the native language. It is argued here that the learner's native dialect should be used instead. Examples are given of transfer from Swabian dialect to English. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Discusses reasons for including prosody in the management of language impairment in children and presents a classification framework that includes four categories of prosodic problems: dysprosody (pitch, loudness, duration, and pausing), prosodic disability (tempo, intonation, stress, and rhythm), prosodic disturbance (interaction disruption), and…

Analysis of the quantitative metrical verse of French Renaissance poet Jean-Antoine de Baif finds that the metrics, often seen as unscannable and using an incomprehensible phonetic orthography, derive largely from a system that is accentual, with the orthography permitting the poet to encode quantitative distinctions that coincide with the meter.…

Analysis of speech samples of 40 noninstitutionalized persons (ages 20-50) with mental retardation found that speech and prosody status were not statistically associated with gender or gross level of mental retardation but were associated with estimated probability of independent living. The existence of a cognitive capacity constraint and a…

Explored the power of intonation of speech addressed to adults and preverbal infants to convey meaningful information to 80 adult listeners. Listeners used intonation to identify speaker's intent with greater accuracy in infant-directed speech than adult-directed speech. (RJC)