ISCA Archive SpeechProsody 2024
ISCA Archive SpeechProsody 2024

Mandarin Tonal Contours in Speakers with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD): Insights into Informational Structure

Vanessa Shih-Han Wu, Hohsien Pan, Susan Shur-Fen Gau

Previous research did not identify f0 as a cue distinguishing new and given information produced by native Mandarin speakers with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This study investigate the effect of information structures on f0 onsets and f0 ranges in new and given information bearing syllables from spontaneous dialogues elicited during the emotion session of Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS). The log semitone f0 at vowel onsets and f0 ranges were divided into four subsets according to four lexical tones. The results indicated that non-autistic and autistic speakers did not distinguish information structures with f0 cues. Instead, male autistic adults produced prominent new information-bearing syllables with significantly narrower f0 ranges and lower f0 onsets for dynamic rising tone T2 or falling tone T4 than TD speakers did. These findings align with the previous descriptiond which found that f0 cues in general do not mark prosodic porminent new information bearing syllables.