Measuring rhythmic complexity: A primer to quantify and compare temporal structure in speech, movement, and animal vocalizations

IF 2.1 0 LANGUAGE & LINGUISTICS Journal of Language Evolution Pub Date : 2017-01-01 DOI:10.1093/JOLE/LZX002
A. Ravignani, Philipp Norton
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引用次数: 35

Abstract

Research on the evolution of human speech and phonology benefits from the comparative approach: structural, spectral, and temporal features can be extracted and compared across species in an attempt to reconstruct the evolutionary history of human speech. Here we focus on analytical tools to measure and compare temporal structure in human speech and animal vocalizations. We introduce the reader to a range of statistical methods usable, on the one hand, to quantify rhythmic complexity in single vocalizations, and on the other hand, to compare rhythmic structure between multiple vocalizations. These methods include: time series analysis, distributional measures, variability metrics, Fourier transform, autoand cross-correlation, phase portraits, and circular statistics. Using computer-generated data, we apply a range of techniques, walking the reader through the necessary software and its functions. We describe which techniques are most appropriate to test particular hypotheses on rhythmic structure, and provide possible interpretations of the tests. These techniques can be equally well applied to find rhythmic structure in gesture, movement, and any other behavior developing over time, when the research focus lies on its temporal structure. This introduction to quantitative techniques for rhythm and timing analysis will hopefully spur additional comparative research, and will produce comparable results across all disciplines working on the evolution of speech, ultimately advancing the field.
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测量节奏复杂性:量化和比较语言、运动和动物发声的时间结构的入门
研究人类语音和音系的进化得益于比较方法:可以提取和比较不同物种的结构、频谱和时间特征,试图重建人类语音的进化史。在这里,我们专注于分析工具来测量和比较人类语言和动物发声的时间结构。我们向读者介绍了一系列可用的统计方法,一方面,量化单个发声的节奏复杂性,另一方面,比较多个发声之间的节奏结构。这些方法包括:时间序列分析、分布度量、可变性度量、傅立叶变换、自动和相互关联、相位肖像和循环统计。使用计算机生成的数据,我们应用了一系列技术,引导读者了解必要的软件及其功能。我们描述了哪些技术是最适合测试特定假设的节奏结构,并提供可能的解释测试。当研究重点在于时间结构时,这些技术同样可以很好地应用于发现手势、运动和任何其他随时间发展的行为的节奏结构。这篇对节奏和时间分析的定量技术的介绍有望刺激更多的比较研究,并将在所有研究语言进化的学科中产生可比的结果,最终推动这一领域的发展。
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来源期刊
Journal of Language Evolution
Journal of Language Evolution Social Sciences-Linguistics and Language
CiteScore
4.50
自引率
7.70%
发文量
8
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