Christina Gildersleeve-Neumann1, Barbara L. Davis1, Peter F. MacNeilage1
1University of Texas, Austin
Tóm tắt
Studies of early-developing consonants (stops, nasals, and glides) in babbling have shown
that most of the variance in consonants and their associated vowels, both within and between
syllables, is due to a “frame” produced by mandibular oscillation, with very little
active contribution from intrasyllabic or intersyllabic tongue movements. In a study of four
babbling infants, the prediction that this apparently basic “frame dominance”
would also apply to late-developing consonants (fricatives, affricates, and liquids) was tested.
With minor exceptions, confirming evidence for both the predicted intrasyllabic and intersyllabic
patterns was obtained. Results provide further evidence for the frame dominance conception, but
suggest that the early rarity of late-developing consonants may be primarily a result of
intrasegmental production difficulty.
