Types Of Alaryngeal Speech Research Articles

Effect of total laryngectomy on vowel production: An acoustic study of vowels produced by alaryngeal speakers of Cantonese

Purpose: To investigate the effect of total laryngectomy on vowel production, the present study examined the change in vowel articulation associated with different types of alaryngeal speech in comparison with laryngeal speech using novel derived formant metrics. Method: Six metrics derived from the first two formants (F1 and F2) including the First and Second Formant Range Ratios (F1RR and F2RR), triangular and pentagonal Vowel Space Area (tVSA and pVSA), Formant Centralisation Ratio (FCR) and Average Vowel Spacing (AVS) were measured from vowels (/i, y, ɛ, a, ɔ, œ, u/) produced by oesophageal (ES), tracheoesophageal (TE), electrolaryngeal (EL), pneumatic artificial laryngeal (PA) speakers, as well as laryngeal speakers. Result: Data revealed a general reduction in articulatory range and a tendency of vowel centralisation in Cantonese alaryngeal speakers. Significant articulatory difference was found for PA and EL compared with ES, TE, and laryngeal speakers. Conclusion: The discrepant results among alaryngeal speakers may be related to the difference in new sound source (external vs internal). Sensitivity and correlation analyses confirmed the use of the matrix of derived formant metrics provided a more comprehensive profile of the articulatory pattern in the alaryngeal population.

Perception of contrastive stress in alaryngeal speech

This project was a perceptual investigation of contrastive stress in alaryngeal speech. The ability to signal contrastive stress in American English was assessed by obtaining high quality tape recordings of sentence production from four normal and sixteen laryngectomized speakers using four different types of alaryngeal speech. The recordings of these sentences, paired on the basis of differences in the location of contrastive stress, were presented to forty listeners for perceptual evaluation of stress location using a two-interval-forced-choice procedure. As expected, the four normal speakers achieved high (95% or above) levels of stress contrast. Contrastive stress patterns were also realized in a highly effective manner (93% or above) by three esophageal speakers, three tracheoesophageal (Blom-Singer) speakers, and three users of the Western Electric # 5 artificial larynx. Contrastive stress patterns were realized in a lower (86–88%), but reasonably effective manner by two users of the Servox artificial larynx. The findings were interpreted to highlight the contributions that study of clinical samples may make to questions about linguistic theory, speech production and speech perception.

Perception of Syntactic Stress in Alaryngeal Speech

This project was a perceptual investigation of syntactic stress in alaryngeal speech. The ability to signal syntactic stress in American English was assessed by obtaining tape recordings of minimally differentiated noun compound-noun phrase pairs (e.g., GREENhouse vs. green HOUSE) from four normal and 16 laryngectomized speakers using four different types of alaryngeal speech. The recordings of these compounds and phrases were presented to 30 listeners for identification using a two-interval-forced-choice procedure. As expected, the four normal speakers were able to achieve high (96% or above) levels of stress contrast. The compound/phrase stress contrasts were also achieved at a high level of proficiency (93% or above) by all four conventional esophageal speakers, all four tracheoesophageal shunt speakers, all four users of the Western Electric #5 electronic artificial larynx, and two of four users of the Servox electronic artificial larynx. Comparisons were made with the results of similar experiments on intonation, contrastive stress, and lexical stress. The findings highlight the contributions that study of clinical samples may make to questions about speech production and perception.

Acceptability ratings of normal, esophageal, and artificial larynx speech.

To provide information about the ultimate acceptability of various types of alaryngeal speech, 37 listeners rated nine speakers with normal phonation in relation to two groups of superior alaryngeal speakers: five who used esophageal speech and four who used artificial larynges. Normal speech was rated significantly more acceptable than any form of alaryngeal speech studied. Speech produced with a Tokyo artificial larynx was rated significantly more acceptable than all other types of alaryngeal speech. Superior esophageal speech was significantly preferred over Western Electric reed and Bell electrolarynx speech. Listeners also categorized each of the 18 speakers as a normal speaker or not a normal speaker. The nine alaryngeal speakers were all classified as nonnormal, while eight of the nine normal subjects were classified as normal.

A study of pharyngeal speech.

Pharyngeal speech represents one of several types of alaryngeal speech; however, its use as a primary method of communication is rare. This report relates the principal findings of an intensive study of a 12-year-old girl with laryngeal papillomatosis who has used pharyngeal speech as an exclusive method of oral communication since age two. The unique physiologic mechanisms of pharyngeal speech are described and differentiated from other forms of alaryngeal speech. This girl’s reduced pharyngeal speech intelligibility for consonant and vowel rhyme-test words, her unfavorable phonation time and maximum phonation duration characteristics, her low average fundamental frequency, and her markedly hoarse pharyngeal voice quality all are distinct vocal liabilities. These findings lend strong support to the hypothesis that pharyngeal speech should not be regarded as a desirable or practical primary method of alaryngeal speech.

A Study of Buccal Speech

Buccal speech represents one of several types of alaryngeal speech; however, its use as a primary method of alaryngeal communication is exceedingly rare. An intensive study of a normal subject, highly proficient in the use of buccal speech was undertaken to obtain information about the mechanism of buccal phonation, the fundamental frequency, phonation time, intelligibility, and rate characteristics of buccal speech. Comparisons were made among the acoustic and perceptual characteristics for buccal, esophageal, and normal speech. The results of the present experiment support the hypothesis that buccal speech does not represent an efficient primary method of alaryngeal speech. [This research supported in part by the Delaware County Cancer Society].