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EUROSPEECH 2003 - INTERSPEECH 2003
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EUROSPEECH 2003 - INTERSPEECH 2003
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This study investigated the effect of duration and intensity on the perception of English lexical stress by native and non-native speakers of English. The spectral balance of intensity was manipulated in a "realistic" way suggested by Sluijter et al. [1], which is to increase intensity level in the higher frequency bands (above 500Hz) as shown in the realisation of vocal effort. A non-sense English word /n(textschwa):n(textschwa):/ embedded in a frame sentence was used as the stimuli of the perceptual experiment, where English speakers and two levels of Japanese learners of English (advanced and pre-intermediate) were asked to determine lexical stress locations. The result showed: (1) "realistically" manipulated intensity serves as a strong cue for lexical stress perception of English for all subject groups; (2) advanced Japanese learners of English are, like English speakers, sensitive to duration in lexical stress perception, whereas pre-intermediate Japanese learners are, to a very limited extent, duration-sensitive; and (3) intensity, if altered in a proper way, could be as significant a cue as duration in perceiving English lexical stress.
Bibliographic reference. Tokuma, Shinichi (2003): "Perception of English lexical stress by English and Japanese speakers: effect of duration and "realistic" intensity change", In EUROSPEECH-2003, 2121-2124.