Abstract
The mechanical linkage between the respiratory apparatus and the larynx may have consequences on the acoustic speech signal. For example, at high lung volumes, the diaphragm usually flattens and pulls the trachea and larynx caudally, exerting a force that abducts the vocal folds. This abductory force may delay the onset of vocal fold vibration that could be realized acoustically as a delay in voice onset time (VOT). To examine this possibility, five young men produced repetitions of a six‐syllable phrase containing two stressed /pi/ syllables from the total lung capacity to the residual volume. Lung volume was determined with magnetometry and VOT for each /pi/ syllable was measured from spectrograms. VOT generally was longer at higher lung volumes than at lower lung volumes in four of the five subjects. This finding supports our hypothesis that the mechanical linkage between the respiratory apparatus and larynx can influence voicing onset. Further, it suggests the need to take lung volume into account when using VOT as an indicator of laryngeal behavior in individuals with speech and voice disorders. [Work supported by NIH.]
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