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A Comparison of Beijing and Taiwan Mandarin Tone Register: an Acoustic Analysis of Three Native Speech Styles

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A Comparison of Beijing and Taiwan Mandarin Tone Register: an Acoustic Analysis of Three Native Speech Styles Brigham Young University BYU ScholarsArchive Theses and Dissertations 2005-08-24 A Comparison of Beijing and Taiwan Mandarin Tone Register: An Acoustic Analysis of Three Native Speech Styles Richard Christen Torgerson Brigham Young University - Provo Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd Part of the Other Languages, Societies, and Cultures Commons BYU ScholarsArchive Citation Torgerson, Richard Christen, "A Comparison of Beijing and Taiwan Mandarin Tone Register: An Acoustic Analysis of Three Native Speech Styles" (2005). Theses and Dissertations. 642. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/642 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. A COMPARISON OF BEIJING AND TAIWAN MANDARIN TONE REGISTER: AN ACOUSTIC ANALYSIS OF THREE NATIVE SPEECH STYLES by Richard C. Torgerson Jr. A thesis submitted to the faculty of Brigham Young University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Language Acquisition Brigham Young University December 2005 BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY GRADUATE COMMITTEE APPROVAL of a thesis submitted by Richard C. Torgerson Jr. This thesis has been read by each member of the following graduate committee and by majority vote has been found to be satisfactory. _________________________ ______________________________________ Date Matthew B. Christensen, Chair _________________________ ______________________________________ Date Dana S. Bourgerie _________________________ ______________________________________ Date Shawn L. Nissen BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY As chair of the candidate’s graduate committee, I have read the thesis of Richard C. Torgerson Jr. in its final form and have found that (1) its format, citations, and bibliographical style are consistent and acceptable and fulfill university and department style requirements; (2) its illustrative materials including figures, tables, and charts are in place; and (3) the final manuscript is satisfactory to the graduate committee and is ready for submission to the university library. _________________________ _________________________________________ Date Matthew B. Christensen Chair, Graduate Committee Accepted for the Department _________________________________________ Ray T. Clifford Graduate Coordinator Accepted for the College _________________________________________ John R. Rosenberg Dean, College of Humanities ABSTRACT A COMPARISON OF BEIJING AND TAIWAN MANDARIN TONE REGISTER: AN ACOUSTIC ANALYSIS OF THREE NATIVE SPEECH STYLES Richard C. Torgerson Jr. Department of Language Acquisition Master of Arts This study investigated the possibility of pitch and tone register differences between native speakers of Taiwan and Beijing Mandarin by means of an acoustic analysis of three speech styles. Speech styles included spontaneous interview, spontaneous descriptive, and controlled read sentential speech. Data analysis included long segments of recorded speech in order to discern any statistically significant pitch register differences between the two dialects. Speech style and read tones were also analyzed. Results suggest that tones produced in Taiwan Mandarin are in a slightly lower register than those produced in Beijing Mandarin. Surprisingly, speech style was not a significant predictor of pitch register in long segments of recorded speech. Despite a limited sample size, this research effectively promotes the inclusion of sociolinguistic variables such as dialect in the field of tone research. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First of all, I must thank my Father for giving me the opportunity to obtain a good education and helping me to complete this thesis. He has guided me along the way, making the research process worthwhile. My wife Melanie has given me constant support, understanding, insight and patience. My daughter Karen has provided much needed relief with her smile and playful attitude. My parents and parents-in-law have been so supportive and encouraging. I am so grateful for all of them. I am also thankful for each of my committee members; for helping me to remember the primary importance of family, even in the midst of a demanding research project. vi Table of Contents List of Tables .............................................................................................................. ix List of Figures.............................................................................................................. x Chapter One – Introduction ........................................................................................ 1 Research Description ....................................................................................... 2 Chapter Two – Review of Literature .......................................................................... 5 A Brief History of Standard Mandarin Chinese (SC) ..................................... 5 The History of Taiwan Mandarin: Guoyu ................................................. 7 The History of Beijing Mandarin: Putonghua .......................................... 8 Conclusion ................................................................................................ 9 Mandarin Lexical Tone and Tone Sandhi ....................................................... 9 An Explanation of Mandarin Lexical Tone .............................................. 9 Tone Sandhi: Rules of Tone Change ...................................................... 11 The Teaching and Learning of Mandarin Lexical Tone .............................. 13 Acoustic Analysis of Spontaneous Speech ................................................... 19 Acoustic Analysis ................................................................................... 19 Spontaneous Speech ................................................................................ 19 Acoustic Analyses of Spontaneous Speech ............................................ 21 Limitations of Spontaneous Speech Data ............................................... 25 Studies on the L1 Perception of Mandarin Lexical Tone .............................. 26 Studies on the L1 Production of Mandarin Lexical Tone.............................. 30 Acoustic Studies of L1 Production ................................................................ 30 Microanalysis Studies of L1 Production........................................................ 40 vii The Role of Production and Perception in L1 Acquisition of Tone .............. 41 Studies on the L2 Perception of Mandarin Lexical Tone .............................. 43 Studies on the L2 Production of Mandarin Lexical Tone.............................. 45 The Role of Production and Perception in the L2 Acquisition of Tone ........ 52 Connections and Contrasts: L1 and L2 Acquisition of Mandarin Tone ........ 52 Summary and Conclusions ............................................................................ 53 Research Hypotheses ..................................................................................... 55 Purpose..................................................................................................... 55 Potential Impact ....................................................................................... 56 Chapter Three – Methodology................................................................................... 58 Participants..................................................................................................... 58 Data Collection Procedures............................................................................ 60 Extraction of F0 ............................................................................................. 63 Research Variables......................................................................................... 65 Research Controls .......................................................................................... 66 Major Social Factors................................................................................ 66 Major Psychological Factors.................................................................... 68 Controls of Major Linguistic Factors in Long Speech Segments............ 68 Controls of Major Linguistic Factors in Analysis of Read Tones ........... 69 Chapter Four – Results............................................................................................... 73 Impact of Dialect and Speech Style on Pitch Register .................................. 73 Impact of Dialect and Tone on Read Tone Register...................................... 75 Discussion of Results..................................................................................... 80 viii Discussion of the Impact of Speech Style and Dialect on Pitch Register 80 Discussion of the Impact of Tone and Dialect on Tone Register ............ 80 Overall Results......................................................................................... 81 Chapter Five – Conclusion......................................................................................... 83 Theoretical Contributions .............................................................................. 83 Pedagogical Implications............................................................................... 84 Limitations and Suggestions for Further Research........................................ 87 Conclusions...................................................................................................
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