Synthetic Vowel Categorization and Dialectology

Abstract

A series of synthetic vowel categorization tests were administered to subjects from four dialect regions; Western New York State, Virginia, Massachusetts, and Ontario (Canada). The aims of the experiment were (1) to establish the feasibility of using such tests in less than ideal testing environments; and (2) to test the hypothesis that differences in manner of categorization correlate with differences in dialect. The results of the experiment indicate that it is feasible to use such tests in less than ideal testing environments, thus opening up the possibility of applications in dialectology field work. Correlations between differences in dialect and differences in manner of categorization were found (1) in the categorization of the vowels of " add ", " tar ", and " odd " by Massachusetts subjects as compared to subjects from Western New York; (2) in the categorization of the vowels of " hat " and " hot " by subjects from Western New York as compared with Massachusetts subjects; and (3) in the poor performance in categorization of the contrast /ε/-/æ/ by subjects from Western New York as compared to other groups. The article concludes with a discussion of applications of synthetic vowel categorization tests to dialectology.

Producing and perceiving the Canadian Vowel Shift: Evidence from a Montreal community

“…In an early study of inter-community variation in speech perception, Willis (1972) analyzed differences in vowel categorization between Fort Erie, Ontario and Buffalo, Hz to 1259 Hz. The result was a single continuum of sounds from sack to sock, which participants categorized as sack, sock, or "could be either".…”

Exploring the relationship between production and perception in the mid front vowels of U.S. English

“…Beyond such studies on social perceptions, there has also been some work investigating the perception of linguistic form, with most of these suggesting that social differences across listeners and/or speakers influence the way they perceive stimuli of varying kinds (e.g. Pisoni, 2004, 2007;Di Paolo and Faber, 1990;Foulkes and Docherty, 2006;Graff et al, 1986;Hay et al, 2006;Jannedy and Hay, 2006;Janson, 1986;Koops et al, 2008;Labov and Ash, 1997;Niedzielski, 1999;Plichta and Preston, 2005;Purnell et al, 1999;Strand, 1999;Strand and Johnson, 1996;Willis, 1972;Wolfram et al, 1999). Foundational work by Johnson et al (1999), Strand (1999) and Strand and Johnson (1996) showed that the perception of both fricative and vowel continua were affected by perceived speaker gender.…”

Regional differences in the perception of a consonant change in progress

“…Ladefoged and Broadbent (1957) showed that the identification of vowels differs between Scottish and English speakers of English, Willis (1972) between American and Canadian speakers of English. Thomas (2011:27) observed that the perceptual differences in Willis (1972) closely match the differences between Buffalo and Ontario accents. Janson (1983) found that speakers from different regions and age groups hear Swedish vowels differently.…”