title: The influence of sentential speaking rate on the internal structure of phonetic categories.
abstract: In the experiments reported in this paper we compared the effects of syllable-level and sentence-level speaking rate on phonetic perception. In an earlier set of experiments, we found that syllable-level rate influences the internal perceptual structure of phonetic categories [Miller and Volaitis, Percept. Psychophys. 46, 505-512 (1989); Volaitis and Miller, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 92, 723-735 (1992)]. Specifically, a change in target-syllable rate altered the location of the stimuli judged to be the best category exemplars, as well as the width of this best-exemplar range. In the present investigation, it was asked whether sentence-level rate has the same influence. It was found that slowing sentence rate shifted the location of the best-exemplar range, but did not alter its width. These findings are discussed in terms of timing mechanisms that may operate during speech perception.
authors.affiliation: Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts 02115.
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Wayland
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: L E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Volaitis
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D006801:Humans; D010700:Phonetics; D013060:Speech; D013067:Speech Perception; D013068:Speech Production Measurement; D013997:Time Factors