Year: 2026
Type: book-chapter
Abstract: In speech, linguistic information is encoded in hierarchically organized units such as phones, syllables, and words. In auditory neuroscience, it is widely accepted that syllables in connected speech are quasi-rhythmic, and the rhythmicity makes them suitable to be encoded by theta-band neural oscillations. The rhythmicity of phones or words, however, is more controversial. Here, we analyze the statistical regularity in the duration of phones, syllables, and words, based on large corpora in English and Mandarin Chinese. The coefficient of variation (CV) of unit duration is slightly lower for syllables than phones and words, consistent with the idea that syllables are more rhythmic than phones and words, but the difference is weak. The mean duration of phones, syllables, and words matches the timescales of alpha-, theta-, and delta-band neural oscillations, respectively.
Authors: Yuran Zhang, Jiajie Zou, Nai Ding
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7155183449