Phonetic Substitution as a Foreign Accent Phenomenon in Native Mandarin Speakers’ Pronunciation of English Rui Li and Patrizia Bonaventura Department of Communication Sciences, Case Western Reserve University ABSTRACT Spectrogram Analysis Example I (Word “Thief” from Sample A to D) Substitution is a common phenomenon when a non-English speaker speaks English with foreign accent. By using spectrographic analysis, a study with a small number of controlled participants has been carried out to observe, in isolated English word, the pattern of substitution of the initial consonant [θ] with [s] by native Mandarin speakers, with short experience in the U. S. A, and little exposure to spoken English. In this study, additional audio data from a Mandarin speaker with longer experience in U. S. A. and audio materials of standard American English, have been included in acoustic analysis for comparison. Finally, a listening evaluation by an American English speaker has been conducted to perceptually detect phonological implications of the substitution. The study shows that native Mandarin speakers with short living experience in English speaking countries, tend to use the Mandarin phone [s] to realize the English phone [θ], difficult to pronounce, because not existing in Mandarin. Such substitution does not induce a phonological difference in Mandarin, but does affect the corresponding American English phonological contrast [θ]-[s]. Linear and non-linear phonological analyses have been applied, to describe the underlying rule which possibly determine this neutralization phenomenon Sample A Sample B Sample C Sample D Thief PHONOLOGICAL ANALYSIS q Systematic substitution phenomenon q Linear phonological analysis Rule: / / /s/ / # ____ q Non-linear phonological analysis GOALS OF THE STUDY Native Mandarin speakers with short living experience in English speaking countries, and short exposure to spoken English, tend to use native Mandarin phones to substitute English phones difficult to produce, as they do not belong to the Mandarin phonetic/phonological inventory. The substitution does not affect phonological contrasts in Mandarin, but neutralizes some English contrasts. The substitution of [θ] with [s] by Mandarin speakers, pronouncing English as a second language, is an example of the phenomenon described above. The goal of this study is to provide evidence for [θ]-[s] substitution by native Mandarin speakers, pronouncing English, through a spectrographic and acoustic analysis of the realizations of the two phones, and also to attempt an explanatory description of the mechanisms underlying the neutralization of the English phonological Spectrogram Analysis Example II (“Think” vs. “Sink” from Sample A and C) Sample A Think Sample C Sink Think Sink q When producing the English words with [ ] in the initial position, Mandarin speakers with reduced exposure to spoken English, attempt to use the alveolar fricative [s] (both a Mandarin and English phoneme) to substitute the English voiceless interdental fricative [ ] that does not exist in Mandarin. Substitution is due probably to lack of perceptual distinction between the interdental and the alveolar fricatives by Mandarin speakers, due to the allophonic status of these two phones in Mandarin. q Substitution between [ ] and [s] does not affect any phonological distinction in Mandarin, but neutralizes the English /s/ – / / phonological contrast /θ/ - /s/ contrast by a non-linear phonological analysis. PHONETIC DESCRIPTION AND PHONOLOGICAL IMPLICATION q The alveolar fricative [s] in Mandarin can be considered as phonetically equivalent to the alveolar fricative [s] in Standard English [1]. However, palatographic studies (Fig. 1) show intersubject variation in the place and amount of constriction of the tip of the tongue depending on individual physiological constraints; this intrinsic phonetic variability of Mandarin [s], probably induces articulatory realizations closer to the interdental production of [ ] in English. Figure 2: Study procedure FOUR PARTICIPANTS SAMPLES Age & Gender First Language Years Stay in USA Origin Sample A 28 Male Mandarin 1. 5 Years North China 25 Female Mandarin 1 Year North China Sample C 34 Male Mandarin > 5 Years North China Sample D q [θ]-[s] substitution in English words made /s/ - / / contrast neutralized. [2][3] Sample B q No interdental fricative [ ] exists in Mandarin. 25 Male Am. E. USA REFERENCES Pretest Result Chart q Noise portion in [s] shows stronger overall energy than noise in [θ]. q Noise portion in [s] has intense high frequency (low limit around 4 KHz); overall energy in [θ] is distributed all over the spectrum and weaker than [s]. q Acoustic cues are used to perceive and distinguish the two fricatives. [2] Testing Result Chart (Target initial consonants [s] & [θ] ) Ladefoged, P. and Maddieson, I. , The sounds of the world's languages, info. Oxford, UK, 1996. [4] Shriberg, L. D. and Kent, R. D. , Clinical Phonetics, Pearson Education Inc. , 2003. This Poster is based on a class project for COSI 211 Phonetics and Phonology, given by Professor Bonaventura, Department of Communication Sciences. The author wishes to thank Professor Bonaventura for her advice and encouragement, which make this poster possible. STUDY DESIGN The Posttest Questionnaires Figure 3: Spectrograms of [s] & [θ] Wilkins, 2003 Compton, A. J. , Compton P-ESL program CD-ROM, Carousel House, San Francisco, CA, 2003. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS [θ] q Pre-test Ensure sample speakers have normal speech ability to produce the alveolar fricative [s] and collect necessary background information for data analysis. q Data collection and testing q Method: Live recording q Participants: Three Mandarin speaking Chinese with at least six years English study One American English speaker [4] Content: 10 English words with initial [θ] 4 pairs of words with only initial sound’s difference 20 random English words q Questionnaire q Posttest data transcription q Data Analysis Borden, G. J. , Harris, K. S. and Raphael, L. R. , Speech Science Primer: Physiology, Acoustics, and Perception of Speech. Lippincott Williams & [3] Spectrogram Characteristics of [s] & [θ] [s] [1] . RESULTS Figure 1: Tracings from X-rays and Palatograms of 3 speakers producing Mandarin alveolar fricative [s] [3] CONCLUSIONS q Mandarin speakers (A, B) with short experience in USA q Can produce [s] and [ө], but [ө] production makes them feel unnatural and uncomfortable. q Don’t think the difference are important, because productions of these two sounds would not make phonological difference in Mandarin words. q Not aware of their substitution in everyday life. q Mandarin speaker C with longer experience in USA q Can produce [s] and [ө], but still sometimes feels not very natural. q Knowing the substitution may lead to misunderstanding.
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