Language Science and Analysis Exam 1

phonetics

articulation, acoustic, and perception of phones

how is sound made/heard

ex. describing the sound /t/ as a voiceless bilabial stop, noting variations like the flap in butter vs the aspirated in top

phonology

abstract system, rules, and functions of phonemes

how do sounds pattern and function to create meaning

ex. the slight variations of /t/ are all instances of the single phoneme /t/ and don’t change word meaning (eg top vs stop)

difference between phonetics and phonology

phonetics- deals with concrete characteristics of sounds, units: phones (distinct speech sound in a language), narrow transcription, [square brackets]

phonology- deals with abstract sound categories, units: phonemes, broad transcription, /forward slash brackets/

segmental features

phonology

individual sounds

vowels/consonants

suprasegmental features

phonology

aspects that influence overall meaning and rhythm of speech

stress, pitch, ton, and/or intonation

phonological rules

phonology

guidelines that describe how sounds interact and change in different environments

natural class- a set of sounds that share the same specified features ex. nasals, fricatives, etc.

contrastive sounds

when you interchange 2 sounds, you also change the words being said

minimal pairs- words differing by 1 sound

non-contrastive sounds

do not serve to differentiate meaning

phonetic environment- specific context of surrounding sounds that influence how a particular sounds is produced

aspiration- a consonant/vowel is pronounced with a puff of air

nasalization- a consonant/vowel is produced with velum lowered, so that air escapes the nose

infants 6-8 months

with typical hearing can perceive difference between non-contrastive sounds

infants 10-12 months

infants with typical hearing can no longer perceive the difference

phonemes

distinct unit of sound

represented by graphemes or letters

allophones

different concrete sounds that do not change meaning and are context-dependent

conditioning environment- phonetic environment that determines which allophone will appear

allophones can exist in complementary distribution or in free variation

distinctive features

vowels- tongue height, tongue position, lip rounding, tenseness

consonants- place, manner voicing,

feature-based analysis matrix/matrices

identifies/explains sound patterns

syllable

onset and rhyme (nucelus and coda)

important for phonological rules, stress, intonation

phonotactic constraints

rules for sound combinations

key aspects- language-specific, syllable structure, position restrictions, internalized rules

phonological processes/patterns

rule-based simplifications

affect natural classes

resolve with age 5-8

persistence beyond expected age 8 may indicate a phonological disorder

main groupings- substitution, assimilation, syllable structure

atypical phonological processes- atypical processes, atypical vowel errors

fronting

velars replaced by alveolars

car→ tar

3.5 years for suppression

backing

alveolars replaced by velars

dog→gog

atypical

stopping

fricatives/affricatives replaced by stops

sun→ tun

/f,s/ by 3 years; /z,v/ by 3.5 years; / by 4.5 years; /

gliding

liquids replaced by glides

rabbit→ wabbit

by 5-7 years is suppressed

vocalization

liquids replaced by vowels

peel→peo

suppressed- 6-7 years

deaffrication

affricatives replaced by fricatives

cheese→ sheese

suppressed- 4-5 years

denasilization

nasals replaced by oral stops

no→ do

suppressed- by 2.5 years, atypical

assimilation

consonant sound starts to sound like another sound in word

nap→ nan

suppressed- by 3 years

coalescence

2 phonemes are substituted with a different phoneme that still has similar features

stop→ fop

suppressed- by 6 years

final consonant devoicing

voiced consonant at end of a word is substituted with a voiceless consonant

road→ roat

suppressed- by 3 years

prevocalic voicing

voiceless consonant in beginning of word is substituted with a voiced consonant

cat→ gat

suppressed- by 6 years

final consonant deletion

omission of final consonant

cat→ ca

suppressed- 3 years

initial consonant deletion

omission of initial consonant

toy→ oy

suppressed- atypical

cluster reduction

omission of consonant clusters

spoon→ poon

suppressed- 3.5 years (without /s/); by 5 years (with /s/)

weak syllable deletion

omission of unstressed syllable

banana→ nana

suppressed- by 4 years

reduplication

repetition of syllables

water→ wawa

suppressed- by 2.5 - 3 years

epenthesis

addition of a sound to break up a cluster

blue→ buh lue

suppressed- by 8 years

phonology and literacy

phonological awareness

reading and spelling links

risk factors- spelling and decoding impacted when there are poor underlying phonology skills

articulation vs. phonological assessment

independent and relational analyes

independent- sound and structures without comparing to adult speech sound, their own syllable a

relational- compare child productions to adult targets to identify problems

phonological structure analysis

examining speech sound as a functional system, what are the rules governing how this child builds syllables in a word

segmentation

contrastive analysis

frequency tables

phonological processes/patterns chart

language samples

how do they organize the information they are using

how sounds are organized into their syllables

language

rule-governed, measurable system

foundations for identifying language differences vs disorders

supports evidence-based clinical decision making

essential for working with diverse populations

theoretical foundations for language

structural and generative linguistic theories

functional and usage-based approaches

social-pragmatic perspectives

implications for assesment and intervention

phonology practice clinical focus

identify phonemes and minimal pairs

code phonological processes in child speech

determine typical vs atypical patterns

discus implications for assessment

morphology

word structure

morphemes as units of meanings

inflectional and derivational morphemes

morphological development in children

common morphological errors- omission ex. two chair

morphology practice clinical focus

segment words into morphemes

identify omitted or incorrect morphemes

analyze overgeneralization errors

link findings to language impairment

syntax

sentence structure

rules governing word order

phrase structure and sentence complexity

development of syntax across sage groups

clinical indicators of syntactic difficulty

syntax practice clinical focus

identify sentence types in transcripts

compare simple and complex sentences

calculate mean length of utterance (MLU)

interpret results clinically

semantics

meaning and vocab

semantic relationships

vocab breadth and depth

thematic roles and relational meaning

impact on comprehension and expression

semantic practice clinical focus

categorize words by semantic class

identify thematic roles in sentences

analyze vocab diversity

apply findings to intervention planning

pragmatics

language use

social rules for communication

conversational skills and discourse

cultural and contextual influences

pragmatic challenges in clinical populations

pragmatics practice clinical focus

analyze conversational terms

identify communicative functions

recognize pragmatic breakdowns

discuss assessment challenges

assessment of language in SLP

standardized and informal measures

language sampling and transcription

form-content-use framework

strengths and limitations of tools

applied research and evidence-based practice

role of research in clinical practice

using data to support intervention decisions

understanding basic research designs

critical consumption of literature

key takeaways for future SLPs

strong language foundations support clinical competence

each domain contributes unique diagnostic info

theory guides interpretation, not just terminology

applies analysis prepares you for practicum and beyond

GALT guidelines

identifying 3 aspects of language production- semantics, syntax, and pragmatics

analyzing the identified structures’ developmental levels

interpreting these analyses’ results

semantic analysis

analysis of meanings expressed in 1-word utterances

analysis of semantic roles and relations expressed in multiword utterances up to approximately 4 words in length

analysis of vocab diversity

representative sample

reliable and valid

reflects child's optimal performance

portrays child’s usual performance

factors affecting sample representatives

nature of interaction

setting

materials

sample size

method of recording

specification of context

language interventionist

wide array of professionals who work with children and adults exhibiting language disorders

syntactic forms

grammatical category in which a word falls

pats of speech ex. noun, verb, adjective

syntactic function

role of a word or a group of words in relation to the rest of the elements in a phrase, clause, or sentence