Electropalatography (EPG) is a computer-based tracking system designed to provide real-time visual biofeedback of articulatory contacts occurring during speech production. Historically, EPG technology has proven functional within the treatment and assessment of speech disorders however, application of EPG technology to assist in second language learning has remained limited. The present thesis is part of a larger study examining the effectiveness of using EPG as an advanced instructional tool for assisting second language (L2) learners of German. Fricative productions ([ç], [x], /s/, and /∫/) within real words were gathered from 12 native English speakers enrolled in a second semester university level course to learn German. Speech productions from student participants were compared against native German speakers' productions collected in a previous study, using electrode mappings, percentages of regional contact, and center of gravity measures. These measures revealed different patterns of palatal contact between fricative sounds, between individual subjects, and cross-linguistically. Fricative sound mappings varied visually as speakers generally produced [ç] and [x] with significantly less palatal contact than when producing /s/ and /∫/. Variation across individual subjects was identified as some produced sounds with nearly no posterior palatal contact while others produced sounds asymmetrically or with decreased overall contact. Cross-linguistic differences were apparent as non-native German speakers frequently contacted greater numbers of electrodes with greater force, compared to the natives. It is anticipated that the information included in this thesis will provide insights into the role of EPG technology as an instructional tool for L2 learners.

Electropalatography (EPG) is a computer-based system that tracks and measures contact patterns between the tongue and palate during speech production. The present study is focused on how the lingua-palatal contact patterns of native English speakers learning German as a second language (L2) differ as a function of task type. The fricatives ich-Laut [ç] and ach-Laut [x] were used as the target sounds, placed in nonsense words, short sentences, and spontaneous speech. The productions of the fricatives in the varying speech tasks were gathered from 12 university students enrolled in their second semester of a university level course of German. Comparisons were made using electrode mappings, percentages of regional contact, duration, and center of gravity measures. Duration measures showed that nonsense words were found to have the greatest duration for both fricatives when compared to the other task types. Percentage of activation measures showed that [ç] presented with similar activation in the medial and posterior regions of the palate across task type, whereas the activation in medial and posterior regions for [x] were found to differ more significantly across task type. Specifically, short sentences and spontaneous speech had similar posterior activation, but differed in medial activation, while nonsense words were different in both regions. Center of gravity measures were also greater in short sentences and spontaneous speech compared to nonsense words for [x]. It is anticipated that the data and information in this thesis will provide insights into the role of linguistic task type and EPG technology as instructional tools for L2 learners.

The importance of accent reduction to those who are learning English as a second language cannot be understated as it has direct and indirect impacts on credibility and income. This study is an evaluation of an instructional technique involving visual feedback through an electropalatography device to assist speakers in acquiring the /r/ and /l/ sound contrast in American English and whether or not that progress varied across speech task type or word position. This study involved four native Japanese participants in their first semester at the English Language Center located at Brigham Young University. Each subject participated in 7 45-minute sessions over the course of 4 weeks. The sessions used a hybrid instructional approach which included traditional auditory feedback combined with intermittent, real-time visual feedback provided by the EPG sensor. Measurements of the third formant of each target sound was extracted from baseline, posttreatment, and follow-up recordings using Praat acoustic analysis software. Overall, all subjects showed a greater contrast in F3 from the baseline assessment to the posttreatment assessment. The subjects demonstrated a greater contrast in F3 during the word task type and also when the phonemes were in the final position of words.

Advances in instrumentation and computer technology such as electropalatography (EPG) have offered additional types of feedback to more traditional therapy for individuals with speech disorders, specifically those with hearing impairment. The purpose of this study was to document whether therapeutic integration of EPG visual feedback in combination with traditional articulation therapy for a school-aged child with an articulation disorder secondary to hearing impairment was more effective than traditional therapy alone. One participant received five sessions of each therapy approach. Six adult listeners rated the quality of the participant's production of /r/ in words recorded during the therapy sessions. The EPG plus a traditional approach to therapy was more effective in treating the misarticulation of /r/ than traditional therapy alone. The integration of EPG therapy into traditional methods was an effective way of treating an articulation disorder for an individual with hearing impairment.

Previous research has investigated adults' ability to adapt their speech when a electropalatographic (EPG) pseudopalate is placed in the oral cavity; however, less is known about how younger speakers who are continuing to develop their motor speech abilities might adapt their speech to the presence of the device. This study examined the effect of an EPG pseudopalate on elementary school-aged children's ability to produce the fricatives /s/ and /ƒ/. Audio recordings of six children were collected at eight time intervals including before placement of the pseudopalate, at 30-minute increments for two hours with the pseudopalate in place, immediately following removal of the pseudopalate and 30 minutes after removal. An acoustic analysis was completed looking at consonant duration, spectral mean, spectral variance, and relative intensity. Disturbance of speech patterns from the presence of the pseudopalate was noted for most of the acoustic measures, most noticeably for the relative intensity of both /s/ and /ƒ/, as well as for the spectral mean and spectral variance of /ƒ/. Although there was a relatively high amount of variability among and within speakers, signs of adaptation were apparent after only 30 minutes for some participants. For some acoustic measures, however, full adaptation often did not occur until the pseudopalate was removed. Although future research is needed, it is hoped that this study will provide a greater understanding of children's ability to adapt to the EPG pseudopalate.

The ability for English Language Learners (ELL) to communicate in a native-like manner can be vital when seeking to improve job opportunities and social interactions. Native Japanese ELL speakers commonly struggle with identifying and producing the English consonants /r/ and /l/ as separate phonemes, even for experienced Japanese ELLs. Traditional means of second language (L2) learning has primarily used auditory feedback. Electropalatography (EPG) is a visual biofeedback system designed to visualize lingua-palatal contact in real time. This study explores the impact of using EPG technology in L2 Speech Learning with Japanese ELLs. Research has shown that EPG technology is an effective method of treating speech sound disorders in children, however there is sparse research available concerning the impact of EPG use in L2 learning for ELLs. This study analyzed four native Japanese speakers' ability to produce the /r/-/l/ contrast before and after L2 learning treatment utilizing EPG technology. Target stimuli containing the /r/ and /l/ phonemes were produced by each participant in three different tasks: nonsense words, words, and spontaneous speech. The /r/ and /l/ phonemes were produced in word-initial and word-final position. The EPG technology and computer software were used to record lingua-palatal contact patterns in order to collect data on each participants' productions of the /r/-/l/ phonemic contrast. In general, all four participants demonstrated increased center of gravity (COG) difference of /r/ and /l/ in 50%-100% of testing conditions from baseline to post treatment and in 33%-100% of testing conditions from post treatment to follow-up. In combination with future research, results from this study will help deepen the knowledge of L2 learning in ELLs specifically related to EPG technology use in treatment.

As there is a clear correlation between one's degree of proficiency in the English language and one's subsequent financial compensation in the workplace setting and in interpersonal relationships, improving one's speaking abilities can be highly valuable from both a financial and emotional perspective. This study examines the efficacy of an electropalatography (EPG) assisted pronunciation training program in helping native Japanese learners of English acquire and improve the /r/ and /l/ sound contrast in American English, as rated by a group of listeners. Additionally, it evaluates whether or not the degree of improvement varied across word position, task type, or assessment period. Four native Japanese speaking learners of English participated in a four-week program which included seven 45- minute training sessions enhanced with visual biofeedback from the EPG. Samples of their productions of the target phonemes were obtained at baseline, at posttreatment, and at follow-up assessment periods. Using a visual analogue scale, 36 adult listeners listened to these recordings and provided comparative auditory perceptual ratings. Overall, subjects showed greater improvement in their production of the phoneme /l/ than in the phoneme /r/. Phoneme-specific patterns emerged in terms of word position, task type, and assessment period. For the phoneme /l/, more improvement was seen in final position than initial position, more improvement was seen in nonsense syllables than in words, and improvements were maintained across posttreatment to follow-up assessment periods. For the phoneme /r/, roughly equal levels of improvement were seen across word position, while greater improvement was seen in the context of words in sentences than in nonsense syllables, and posttreatment showed greater levels of improvement than did follow-up assessment periods. These results are promising as it indicates that EPG assisted pronunciation training may be an effective vehicle to help L2 English language learners acquire and improve their productions of the /r/-/l/ phonemic contrast. This is significant, as the Japanese L2 population has typically been found to be highly resistant to more traditional forms of intervention.

Many studies in speech communication have provided valuable findings concerning the kinematic nature of speech articulation. This type of research often involves introducing an oral device to the vocal tract such as lingual pellets, magnets, and different forms of pseudopalates to track the movement and placement of the articulators. This study examined the effect of an electropalatography (EPG) pseudopalate on the production of five voiceless obstruents (/p, t, k, s/ and /sh/). Acoustic recordings from 20 adult speakers with typical speech production were made during three different speaking conditions: prior to pseudopalate placement, immediately after placement, and following 20 minutes of conversation. The obstruent articulations were examined in terms of four spectral moments (spectral mean, spectral variance, spectral skewness, and spectral kurtosis). The spectral analysis indicated that placement of a pseudopalate resulted in a statistically significant disturbance of the speakers' obstruent productions. After 20 minutes of conversation with the pseudopalate in place, results of the spectral analysis indicated that participants' productions trended back toward a typical pattern of articulation; however their adaptation was not complete and it remains unclear if further practice with the pseudopalate would result in typical speech production.

Electropalatography (EPG) is a system designed to provide visual feedback of lingua-palatal contact via electrodes and computer software in real-time. Traditionally, EPG technology has been effective in the treatment of both developmental and acquired speech disorders. Little research, however, has been done to show the effectiveness of EPG feedback in second language instruction and foreign accent reduction. The present thesis is part of a larger project examining the utility of EPG technology as a potential tool for teaching English speakers learning German as a second language (L2). A common error that English speakers make in German pronunciation is the incorrect use of dark [ɫ], when only light [l] should be present. This study seeks to identify the individual contact patterns of light and dark [ɫ] in English to determine if the differences in lingua-palatal contact patterns warrant further testing of EPG feedback in L2 instruction of German. Productions of light and dark [ɫ] were collected from twelve native English speakers in phrases, words, and nonsense words. Regional activation percentages, center of gravity measures, and visual lingua-palatal contact maps indicated distinct differences between the participants light and dark [ɫ] productions. These differences typically did not vary significantly across vowel type, but did change as a function of the linguistic task. The findings of this study indicate that additional research into the efficacy of EPG visual feedback with L2 German learners is warranted. Thus, EPG may be an effective tool in teaching the allophonic sound contrast between light and dark [ɫ] for L2 learners.

Les résultats obtenus en psycholinguistique via des études perceptives sur le traitement de la consonne de liaison montrent que le traitement de ce phénomène complexe n’est qu’imparfaitement prédit par les différentes théories phonologiques dans lesquelles il a été intégré de manière explicite. C’est pourquoi nous proposons dans cette thèse, qui s’inscrit dans une perspective résolument nouvelle, d’envisager la liaison du point de vue de la production et de la formaliser dans le cadre de la Phonologie articulatoire de Browman et Goldstein (1986). Ce modèle présente l’avantage d’une organisation directe entre phonologie et phonétique en utilisant une seule unité qui sert à la fois de primitive phonologique et d’unité d’action motrice dans la production de la parole : le geste articulatoire. Nous supposons que le statut phonologique de « segment flottant » proposé pour la consonne de liaison dans le cadre de la phonologie autosegmentale (Clements & Keyser, 1985 ; Encrevé 1988) puisse trouver un corrélat au niveau articulatoire et puisse être observé et mesuré expérimentalement. L’analyse qui vient à l’appui de cette hypothèse compare la consonne de liaison avec la consonne initiale de mot dans des contextes vocaliques identiques au moyen de mesures électro-palatographiques. Nos résultats suggèrent que la consonne de liaison est soumise à une modification quantitative des caractéristiques dynamiques qui lui sont associés. Les mouvements des articulateurs ainsi que les relations entre les gestes consonantique et vocalique sont ré-échelonnés en fonction de la position qu’occupe la consonne de manière graduelle. / Perceptual studies in the field of psycholinguistics on the processing of the liaison consonant have shown that this complex phenomenon is not perfectly predicted by the different phonological theories in which it has been explicitly integrated. In this thesis, we propose to investigate liaison from a totally new perspective, that is from a production point of view, and to formalise this phenomenon in the framework of Browman and Goldstein (1986)’s Articulatory Phonology. This model is advantageous as it provides a direct connection between phonology and phonetics where only one unit is used both as a phonological primitive and as a unit of motor action in speech production, that is articulatory gesture. In the Framework of autosegmental phonology (Clements & Keyser, 1985 ; Encrevé 1988), the phonological status of the liaison consonant is considered to be a floating segment. In this thesis, we hypothesise that there is a correlate at the articulatory level that can be observed and experimentally measured. This hypothesis is tested by comparing the liaison consonant with the word-initial consonant in identical vowel contexts by using electro-palatographical measurements.Results suggest that the liaison consonant is subjected to a quantitative modification of the dynamic caracteristics which are associated with it. The articulator movements, as well as the relations between consonant and vowel gestures, are gradually re-scaled according to the consonant position.