Coarticulation of disyllables by deaf and hearing speakers

The coarticulatory patterns of three deaf and three hearing adult speakers were assessed as a function of segment type and phonetic context, by means of acoustic analysis of the F2. The F2 differences between /■♯CVC/ disyllables minimally contrasting in vocalic ([i], [u], [a]) and in constant ([b], [d]) context, respectively, were examined at five measurement locations, namely, at ■ onset, ■ midpoint, ■ offset, and transition onset and vowel midpoint of the stressed vowel. Intervocalic coarticulation was greater for either deaf or hearing speakers, depending on the phonetic composition of disyllables (bVb or dVd). Moreover, the deaf speakers showed less marked consonant influences on the ■ and stressed vowel portions of disyllables compared to the hearing controls. The above findings partly dispute the conclusions drawn from previous studies. Furthermore, they suggest that the speech of deaf speakers is guided by patterns of articulatory organization similar in certain respects to those of young children learning to speak.