ABSTRACT
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................299 Analysis of Pitch Contour Shape ...........................................................................................301
Methods..........................................................................................................................................301 Qualitative Analysis ................................................................................................................302 DAISY.....................................................................................................................................302 Eigenshape Analysis (EA) ......................................................................................................303
Results ............................................................................................................................................303 Qualitative Analysis ................................................................................................................303 DAISY.....................................................................................................................................304 Eigenshape Analysis ...............................................................................................................305
Discussion ......................................................................................................................................306 Function of IDS Pitch Contours.............................................................................................306 Evaluation of Novel Approaches............................................................................................307
Conclusions ....................................................................................................................................308 Acknowledgements ........................................................................................................................309 References ......................................................................................................................................309
Most readers browsing through the content pages of this volume might well be surprised to find a chapter that concerns itself with pitch contour analysis and infant-directed speech (IDS). The reader could be excused for feeling the urge to turn quickly to the next chapter. However, in the following pages we will attempt to show that techniques used for shape characterization also have a place in psychological research. In fact, as with research into automated taxonomic identification, pattern recognition is of considerable interest in a psychological context. In the case of human speech, the potential to detect and characterize discrete acoustic patterns represents the key to a storehouse of information that can shed light on the origin, diversity, and mechanics of language. This research
