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Motor Explanations of Babbling and Early Speech Patterns

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Developmental Neurocognition: Speech and Face Processing in the First Year of Life

Part of the book series: NATO ASI Series ((ASID,volume 69))

Abstract

From the onset of canonical babbling, human vocal output is dominated by the cyclical open-close alternation of the mandible. Mandibular cyclicity has a long evolutionary history in sucking, licking and chewing in mammals, and also appears communicatively in lipsmacks, tonguesmacks and teeth chatters in other primates. It is argued that many of the articulatory regularities in the sound patterns of babbling, and early speech, which closely resembles babbling, (including consonants, vowels, syllables, and many of their detailed attributes) can be attributed directly to properties of this basic mandibular cycle. In addition, some interarticulator synergies evolving with the cycle, plus developmental limitations in changing locus of control between and within articulators during utterances, seem responsible for most other regularities in babbling and early speech.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Texas, Austin, Texas, 78712, USA

    P. F. Macneilage & B. L. Davis

Authors
  1. P. F. Macneilage
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  2. B. L. Davis
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Experimental Psychology Laboratory, E.H.E.S.S. and C.N.R.S., Paris, France

    Bénédicte de Boysson-Bardies

  2. Development and Cognition Unit, Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, C.N.R.S., Marseille, France

    Scania de Schonen

  3. Psychology Department, SUNY at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, USA

    Peter Jusczyk

  4. Department of Linguistics, University of Texas, Austin, Texas, USA

    Peter McNeilage

  5. Cognitive Development Unit, MRC, London, UK

    John Morton

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© 1993 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

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Macneilage, P.F., Davis, B.L. (1993). Motor Explanations of Babbling and Early Speech Patterns. In: de Boysson-Bardies, B., de Schonen, S., Jusczyk, P., McNeilage, P., Morton, J. (eds) Developmental Neurocognition: Speech and Face Processing in the First Year of Life. NATO ASI Series, vol 69. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8234-6_28

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-015-8234-6_28

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-90-481-4251-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-015-8234-6

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