The probabilistic relationship between pitch accents and information status in public speech

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suyeon Im ◽  
Jennifer Cole ◽  
Stefan Baumann
Keyword(s):  
Public Speech ◽  
Information Status ◽  
Pitch Accents

Pitch accents and information status in a German radio news corpus

2009 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katrin Schweitzer ◽  
Arndt Riester ◽  
Michael Walsh ◽  
Grzegorz Dogil
Keyword(s):  
Information Status ◽  
News Corpus ◽  
Pitch Accents ◽  
Radio News

scholarly journals Probabilistic relation between co-speech gestures, pitch accents and information status

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 685 ◽  
Author(s):  
Suyeon Im ◽  
Stefan Baumann
Keyword(s):  
Information Status ◽  
Probabilistic Relation ◽  
Pitch Accents

This study investigates the occurrence of co-speech gestures as a function of prosodic prominence (pitch accents) and discourse meaning (information status) in a clear and engaging speech style. Among several types of co-speech gestures, we examine non-referential gestures, which are claimed to be prosodic in nature (Shattuck-Hufnagel & Ren 2018). In particular, we want to find out to what extent these gestures co-occur with specific accent types and whether they are used to encode referential, lexical, or contrastive information. Our results show that the occurrence of gestures was highest for L+H*, followed by H*, !H*, and unaccented words. Gestures were accompanied by L* only in continuations. Also, co-speech gestures were more likely to occur with new or accessible, and especially contrastive, information than with given information. The patterns differed between the referential and lexical level of information status, though. In general, this study suggests that co-speech gestures contribute to the probabilistic encoding of a word’s information status in conjunction with pitch accents.

No stress, no pitch accent, no prosodic focus: the case of Ambonese Malay

Phonology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (2) ◽  
pp. 353-389 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raechel Maskikit-Essed ◽  
Carlos Gussenhoven
Keyword(s):  
Pitch Accent ◽  
Final Word ◽  
Word Stress ◽  
Information Status ◽  
Prosodic Focus ◽  
Pitch Accents ◽  
Minimal Stress

Varieties of Malay, including Indonesian, have been variously described as having word stress on the penultimate syllable, as having variable word stress and as having a phrase-final pitch accent without word stress. In Ambonese Malay, the alignment of sentence-final pitch peaks fails to support the existence of either word stress or phrase-final pitch accents. Also, the shape of its pitch peaks fails to vary systematically with the information status of the phrase-final word. The two intonation melodies of the language include phrase-final boundary-tone complexes which do not associate with any syllables. The declarative rise-fall would appear to be timed so as to occur within the last word of the sentence. Minimal stress pairs presented in earlier descriptions show a contrast between /a/ and a segmentally distinct weak /ă/, a contrast that also appears in positions that have not been claimed to have stress. A preliminary phonological analysis concludes the account.

scholarly journals Focus Triggers and Focus Types from a Corpus Perspective

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 215-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arndt Riester ◽  
Stefan Baumann
Keyword(s):  
Information Structure ◽  
Pitch Accent ◽  
Current Debate ◽  
Single Sentence ◽  
Information Status ◽  
Prosodic Phrase ◽  
Primary Focus ◽  
Pitch Accents ◽  
A Current ◽  
Labelling Scheme

The article discusses several issues relevant for the annotation of written and spoken corpus data with information structure. We discuss ways to identify focus top-down (via questions under discussion) or bottom-up (starting from pitch accents). We introduce a two-dimensional labelling scheme for information status and propose a way to distinguish between contrastive and non-contrastive information. Moreover, we take side in a current debate, claiming that focus is triggered by two sources: newness and elicited alternatives (contrast). This may lead to a high number of semantic-pragmatic foci in a single sentence. In each prosodic phrase there can be one primary focus (marked by a nuclear pitch accent) and several secondary foci (marked by weaker prosodic prominence). Second occurrence focus is one instance of secondary focus.

Contribution of an Educational Phase to Stress Inoculation of Speech Anxiety

1980 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 495-501
Author(s):  
Matt E. Jaremko ◽  
Rob Hadfield ◽  
William E. Walker
Keyword(s):  
Combination Group ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Stress Inoculation ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Stress Inoculation Training ◽  
Speech Anxiety ◽  
Public Speech ◽  
Behavioral Ratings ◽  
Treatment Groups ◽  
Treatment Control Group

A study is described in which students anxious about speeches were treated by variations of stress inoculation training. The purpose of the experiment was to evaluate the contribution of an educational phase to the training. Three treatment groups received either the educational phase only, the skills phase only, or both. These were compared with a no-treatment control group. The education-only group was the only group to improve significantly on self-reported anxiety measured before giving a public speech. The education-only and combination group improved on self-reported self-efficacy as a speaker. All groups improved on behavioral ratings of anxiety. Discussion focuses on the apparent potency of using an educational model in the treatment of anxiety. Future research is suggested for delineating the conditions under which education is a powerful ingredient.

scholarly journals USING PROSODY TO PREDICT UPCOMING REFERENTS IN THE L1 AND THE L2

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
Anouschka Foltz
Keyword(s):  
Language Learners ◽  
Second Language Learners ◽  
Exposure Period ◽  
Predictive Processing ◽  
Bilingual Speakers ◽  
Prosodic Cues ◽  
Resource Deficit ◽  
L1 And L2 ◽  
Pitch Accents

Abstract While monolingual speakers can use contrastive pitch accents to predict upcoming referents, bilingual speakers do not always use this cue predictively in their L2. The current study examines the role of recent exposure for predictive processing in native German (L1) second language learners of English (L2). In Experiment 1, participants followed instructions to click on two successive objects, for example, Click on the red carrot/duck. Click on the green/GREEN carrot (where CAPS indicate a contrastive L + H* accent). Participants predicted a repeated noun following a L + H* accent in the L1, but not in the L2, where processing was delayed. Experiment 2 shows that after an exposure period with highly consistent prosodic cues, bilinguals engaged in predictive processing in both their L1 and L2. However, inconsistent prosodic cues showed different effects on bilinguals’ L1 and L2 predictive processing. The results are discussed in terms of exposure-based and resource-deficit models of processing.

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