On the development of Motor Control in Speech: Evidence from studies of temporal coordination.
| Number | 472 |
|---|---|
| Year | 1984 |
| Drawer | 8 |
| Entry Date | 11/19/1999 |
| Authors | Hawkins, S. |
| Contact | |
| Publication | Speech and Language: Advances in Basic Research and Practice, II, 317-374. |
| url | http://www.haskins.yale.edu/Reprints/HL0472.pdf |
| Abstract | [Introduction] The timing and rhythm of speech was, until recently, a neglected area of research, with a few notable but isolated exceptions (e.g., Lehiste, 1970; Allen, 1972, 1973; Klatt, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976). The last decade or so has seen a change: segmental and syllabic duration has been recognized as being of basic importance to speech intelligibility and as an indicant of the central organization of speech. This change has taken place within the context of increased interest in all prosodic aspects of speech (see Cohen & Nooteboom, 1975, and Phonetica, 1981, Vols. 1-3). Studies of timing in children’s speech have followed a similar pattern: during the last 10 years there has been a slow but steady increase of interest in the area. There is now a relatively large body of data, and we are faced with the question of what to do with it. One of the most important aspects of research into the timing of children’s speech is that it provides a potential field for testing theories of the development of speech as a motor skill. Increasingly mature temporal organization of speech units is assumed to reflect increasing coordination of the motor gestures for speech. An initial aim of this article is to specify some assumptions basic to a theory from which useful models of the developing motor organization of speech can be derived. Some existing data on speech timing will then be examined in ters of these assumptions and a possible theoretical framework will be discussed. Questions raised by this examination will, it is hoped, help to focus future inquiry on those issues most urgently in need of answers. |
| Notes |
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