Department of English, National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei City.
J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2022 Jun 8;65(6):2160-2186. doi: 10.1044/2022_JSLHR-21-00597. Epub 2022 May 10.
Our audio-vocal system involves a negative feedback system that functions to correct for fundamental frequency ( ) errors in production. Therefore, automatic and opposing responses appear when an unexpected change in voice pitch is present in auditory feedback. This study explores following responses to pitch perturbation in auditory feedback in tonal language speakers, which have been commonly overlooked or discarded by past research. We examine whether the number of response types (opposing vs. following) and their dynamic contours in tone word production vary as a function of instruction (involuntary ["to ignore"] vs. volitional ["to compensate"]).
Twenty-four native speakers of Taiwanese Southern Min (TSM) produced three disyllabic TSM words while receiving pitch perturbation through headphones. The three disyllabic words were ("out of tune"; HH), ("exchange"; MM), and ("handle a case"; LL) that carry an identical high-, mid-, or low-level tone. The participants were instructed either "to ignore" or "to compensate" for the pitch shifts.
Results from a Bayesian Poisson regression show that the number of opposing and following responses were split nearly 50-50 for the "ignore" condition and 55%-35% for the "compensate" condition. The simulation results indicate that the speakers were able to switch between the feedback and the feedforward mode during the testing. On the other hand, contour analyses using generalized additive models show that pitch-increasing responses (i.e., oppose to downshifts or follow upshifts) were significantly larger than pitch-decreasing responses (i.e., oppose to upshifts or follow downshifts) for the MM and LL words, but not for the HH word.
Our results provide support for the view that, for tone speakers, following responses are not uncommon. The magnitudes of pitch shift response trajectories have to do with the available pitch range for moving up or down in tone word production.
我们的音频-发声系统涉及一个负反馈系统，该系统的功能是纠正产生中的基频（）误差。因此，当听觉反馈中出现音高的意外变化时，会出现自动和相反的反应。本研究探讨了语调语言使用者在听觉反馈中对音高变化的后续反应，这些反应在过去的研究中经常被忽视或丢弃。我们检查了在声调词产生中，反应类型（相反的与跟随的）的数量及其动态曲线是否随指令（“忽略”[to ignore]与“补偿”[to compensate]）而变化。
24 名母语为台湾闽南话（TSM）的说话者在头戴式耳机中接受音高变化的情况下，说出三个双音节 TSM 单词。这三个双音节词分别为“out of tune”（HH）、“exchange”（MM）和“handle a case”（LL），它们都带有相同的高平、中平或低平调。参与者被指示“忽略”或“补偿”音高变化。
贝叶斯泊松回归的结果表明，在“忽略”条件下，相反和跟随反应的数量几乎平分秋色（50-50），而在“补偿”条件下，跟随反应的数量（55%-35%）略多于相反反应的数量。模拟结果表明，在测试过程中，说话者能够在反馈和前馈模式之间切换。另一方面，使用广义加性模型进行的音高曲线分析表明，在 MM 和 LL 词中，音高升高的反应（即，反对音高下降或跟随音高上升）明显大于音高下降的反应（即，反对音高上升或跟随音高下降），但在 HH 词中则不然。
我们的结果支持了这样一种观点，即对于声调语言使用者来说，跟随反应并不罕见。音高变化反应轨迹的幅度与在声调词产生中向上或向下移动的可用音高范围有关。
