This thesis investigates the rhythm and mean pitch of the English of Māori speakers. Recordings are analysed from speakers who have varying degrees of fluency and socialisation in Māori. The rhythm and mean pitch of their English language recordings are measured and analysed in order to address two questions. The first part addresses the question, ‘Has the distinctive syllable-timed rhythm of modern Māori English developed from the mora-timed rhythm of the Māori language?’ Changes in the rhythm of the English of Māori speakers are measured over time. The rhythm of these speakers is then compared with age-matched Pākehā English speakers. The results show that the distinctive syllable-timed rhythm has indeed developed from the mora-timed rhythm of the Māori language and the use of this rhythm is related to the degree of Māori identity felt by the speaker. The second part is also concerned with prosody and addresses the question, ‘Are rhythm and mean pitch influenced by topic?’ This is investigated by topic tagging the recordings and comparing the rhythm and mean pitch of each tagged section of speech. Two sets of topic tags are used; Set One has tags representing five categories (Subject, Referent, Location, Time and Attitude) and Set Two has only one tag per topic. The results suggest that mean pitch is not influenced by topic but is higher in sections of quoted speech than in regular speech. The subtle variations observed in rhythm are highly individualised and are influenced most strongly by the referent of the topic and the degree of affinity felt towards that referent.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a developmental disorder characterized by atypical development in the domains of social, emotional, language and cognitive functioning in the first few years of life. Research indicates an associated phenomenon of sensory processing abnormalities in the ASD population (Baker, Lane, Angley, & Young, 2008), and specifically auditory domain (Tecchio et al., 2003) which may relate to language deficits (Baranek, David, Poe, Stone & Watson, 2006). This study researched the effect of auditory sensory abnormalities on language in young children with ASD (n = 118), specifically receptive and expressive language and prosody. A specific subdomain of auditory abnormalities, sensory seeking, was found to be predictive of expressive language (β = .30, p=.009), perhaps due to a focus on auditory stimuli to the exclusion of expressive language interaction. There was no significant effect for receptive language (β = .16, p=.16) and prosody (β = -.09, p=.493).

There are different ways of developing a second language. The purpose of this qualitative study is to investigate whether and possibly how music, focused on singing, can improve the development of Swedish as a second language. Through interviews with three vocal teachers, from three different schools in Sweden, and observations of one of the vocal teachers, information about how they work and think about the subject has been collected. The vocal teachers teach groups of second language learners by singing songs made especially for second language learning. The vocal teachers consider singing beneficial in the development of the pronunciation and improvement of the prosody, which affects the students’ capacity to sound like a native Swedish speaker. They also mention factors which contradict the positive improvement of the language learning, for example when the prosody in singing does not coincide with the prosody in speech, which inhibits learning. The teachers are however in agreement about singing being beneficial and the categories of prosody, joy and pleasure are emphasized.

This thesis is a detailed investigation of the phonology and phonetics of the intonation of Persian carried out in the framework of the AM theory of intonational phonology. Based on 2112 utterances read by a total of 8 native speakers, the work, on the one hand, presents a phonological account of the prosodic structure of this language, a structure that consists of the level Accentual Phrase with the pitch accent (L+)H* immediately dominated by the level Intonational Phrase, each level being marked by a low or high boundary tone. On the other hand, it scrutinizes the phonetic implementation of tones with regard to segments and shows how the phonology of Persian intonation is phonetically realized in the speech string. This research also studies the intonational patterns of simplex sentences, compound sentences coordinated with different types of conjunctions, subordinate structures, and vocative constructions. The sentence types include copular verb declaratives, sentences with unaccusative and unergative verbs, (S)(O)V sentences with and without adjuncts, null subject sentences, scrambled sentences, yes/no questions, leading yes/no questions, alternative questions, tag questions, single and multiple WH-questions, echo questions, imperatives, and single, double, and phrase focus constructions.

The current dissertation represents one of the first systematic studies of the distribution of speech errors within supralexical prosodic units. Four experiments were conducted to gain insight into the specific role of these units in speech planning and production. The first experiment focused on errors in adult English. These were found to be systematically distributed within the highest-level supralexical prosodic unit, the Intonational Phrase (IP), providing evidence for its psychological reality. The specific distribution of errors--fewest in unit-initial position, with a gradual increase in errors across the unit--was interpreted to suggest that the IP functions as a planning domain: the unit is activated as a whole, and activation gradually decays with time leading to an increase in errors. The second experiment was motivated by the idea that a decrease in IP activation is best understood in the context of working memory processes. Children's speech was examined in preference to adult speech because it is less automatized and so likely more influenced by working memory. The findings were that children with better working memories produced shorter IPs and relatively more anticipatory errors than children with poorer working memories. The results provided further evidence for the role of IPs in planning. The third and fourth experiments extended the investigation to another language, Korean, and examined the role of a mid-level prosodic unit, the Accentual Phrase (AP), in planning and production. The results indicated the same pattern of error distribution in the Korean IP as in the English IP. In contrast, more errors occurred in AP-initial position than in the second half of the unit, and the elicited errors tended to preserve AP-internal structure. The results were interpreted to suggest that the AP provides a structural frame within which elements are slotted for production. Overall, the results are consistent with the idea that these units play a critical role in the planning and production process. The results also suggest that different units within the prosodic hierarchy function differently: the IP functions as a planning domain, and mid-level units (i.e., AP) provide the structure needed to accomplish serial ordering in speech. This dissertation includes previously published co-authored material.

A presente tese se organiza em torno da seguinte questão: o que caracteriza a expressão autobiográfica, narrativa, vocal e motora na depressão e seus subtipos melancólica e não-melancólica? A fim de investigar esta questão, foram realizados três estudos. O Estudo I investigou a relação entre diferentes dimensões do afeto (estado afetivo positivo/negativo, depressão e neuroticismo) e características do relato de eventos autobiográficos (especificidade e coerência narrativa de eventos). Nesse estudo, 78 estudantes universitários relataram por escrito três eventos autobiográficos e responderam aos instrumentos: 1) Inventário de Depressão de Beck (BDI); 2) Escala de Afetos Positivos e Negativos (PANAS); e 3) Escala Fatorial de Ajustamento Emocional/Neuroticismo (EFN). O Estudo II investigou a relação entre escore de depressão e variáveis verbais (prosódia e coerência narrativa), verificando também se existem diferenças no padrão prosódico-narrativo da depressão nãomelancólica e melancólica. Participaram 17 pacientes com diagnóstico de depressão, avaliados através dos seguintes instrumentos: 1) Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI-Plus), 2) Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D); 3) Beck Depression Inventory – BDI); 4) The CORE Assessment of Psychomotor Change, e 5) Relato verbal de três eventos de vida. O Estudo III teve como objetivo avaliar diferenças na atividade motora entre indivíduos com depressão melancólica e não-melancólica. A amostra foi composta por 15 pacientes com diagnóstico de depressão. A severidade dos sintomas depressivos foi avaliada utilizando a HAM-D e o BDI. O CORE foi utilizado para avaliar a melancolia, e a atividade motora foi mensurada através de actigrafia. Os resultados da tese sugerem uma revisão da noção de que afetos mais prolongados teriam maior impacto em variáveis narrativas, dado que o estado afetivo foi o único preditor da coerência narrativa. Concluiu-se que a recordação de eventos inespecíficos e a dificuldade de reavaliação de experiências constituem mecanismos basais na depressão, explicando a persistência de memórias dolorosas e crenças negativas inflexíveis. A melancolia caracterizou-se por uma diminuição na movimentação do corpo e na amplitude da frequência vocal, atestando a lentificação do movimento como um critério crucial para a identificação do subtipo melancólico de depressão. / This dissertation is organized around the following question: what characterizes the autobiographical narrative, vocal, and motor expression in depression and its melancholic and non-melancholic subtileza? In order to investigate this question, three studies were performed. Study I investigated the relationship between different dimensions of affect (positive and negative affective state, depression, and neuroticism) and some features of autobiographical narrative (specificity, and narrative coherence of events). In this study, 78 college students wrote three autobiographical events and answered to three instruments: 1) Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), 2) Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS); and 3) Factorial Scale of Neuroticism (EFN). Study II investigated: 1) the relationship between the depression score, and verbal variables (prosody and narrative coherence); and 2) differences in the prosodicnarrative pattern of individuals with non-melancholic and with melancholic depression. The sample consisted of 17 patients with major depressive disorder, who were assessed using the following instruments: 1) Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI-Plus), 2) Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), 3) Beck Depression Inventory - BDI), 4) The CORE Assessment of Psychomotor Change, and 5) Verbal report of three life events. Study III aimed to evaluate differences in motor activity between individuals with melancholic and non-melacholic depression. The sample was composed by 15 patients with diagnostic of major depressive episode. The measurement of the severity of depressive symptoms was made using the HAM-D and BDI. The CORE instrument was used to assess melancholia, and motor activity was measured by actigraphy. Altogether, the three studies that compose this dissertation suggest a revision of the notion that long lasting affects would have major impact on narrative variables, once the affective state was the only predictor of narrative coherence. We conclude that the recollection of nonspecific events and ressignification impairment are core mechanisms in depression, explaining the persistence of painful memories and inflexible negative beliefs. The melancholia was characterized by a decrease in body movement and amplitude of vocal frequency, confirming that lentification of movement is a crucial criteria for melancholic subtype of depression.

Orientador: Luciani Ester Tenani / Banca: Gisela Collischonn / Banca: Fabiana Cristina Komesu / Resumo: Propusemos, nesta dissertação, estabelecer uma discussão sobre a relação entre a organização prosódica do Português brasileiro e a produção de sentido(s). Para desenvolver essa discussão, realizamos análises fonológica e discursiva de cadeias fônicas ambíguas presentes na interpretação de quatro canções populares brasileiras. Essa ambigüidade se deve à segmentação alternativa de determinadas cadeias fônicas presentes nas canções. A segmentação, a nosso ver, divide o fluxo enunciativo e estabelece fronteiras, sendo que chamamos de alternativa àquelas segmentações que, na interpretação, alteram as fronteiras das segmentações estabelecidas nas letras impressas das canções. Buscamos compreender como essas segmentações se relacionam com as alterações de fronteiras de constituintes prosódicos e quais as relações existentes entre essas alterações de fronteiras e a construção de sentido(s) na linguagem. A hipótese que orientou nosso trabalho foi a de que as segmentações realizadas pelos intérpretes, as quais diferem daquelas estabelecidas nas letras das canções, representariam um momento em que se poderia olhar, de maneira privilegiada, para o funcionamento da linguagem, sendo possível observar tanto sua organização prosódica quanto sua estrutura heterogênea. Considerando essa hipótese, nosso objetivo mais geral foi o de explicitar, a partir de uma visão global sobre a linguagem, não somente os fatos fonológicos da língua, mas também os sentidos que esses fatos desencadeiam em um texto. Como objetivo mais específico, buscamos evidências (i) das alterações de fronteiras dos constituintes prosódicos, através das segmentações...(Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: In this dissertation, we proposed to establish a discussion about the relationship between the Brazilian prosodic organization of Portuguese and the sense production. In order to develop that discussion, we accomplished phonological and discursive analyses of ambiguous phonic chains present in the interpretation of four Brazilian popular songs. This ambiguity is due to the alternative segmentation of certain phonic chains in the songs. The segmentation, from our point of view, divides the speech flow and establishes boundaries. In the interpretation of the songs, the segmentations which alter the boundaries of the established segmentations in the printed lyrics of the songs were named as alternative. We aimed to understand how those segmentations are related to the alterations of prosodic constituent boundaries and what the existent relationships between those alterations of boundaries and the sense construction in the language are. Our work was guided by the hypothesis that the segmentations accomplished by the interpreters, which differ from those established in the songs lyrics, would represent a moment in which it would be possible to look at the language functioning, in a privileged way, enabling the observation of the prosodic organization as well as the heterogeneous structure of the language. In considering this hypothesis, our general objective was to determine, from a global vision of the language, not only the phonological facts of the language, but also the senses that those facts unchain in a text. As a more specific objective, we looked for evidences (i) of the alterations of prosodic constituent...(Complete abstract click eletronic access below) / Mestre

A presente tese se organiza em torno da seguinte questão: o que caracteriza a expressão autobiográfica, narrativa, vocal e motora na depressão e seus subtipos melancólica e não-melancólica? A fim de investigar esta questão, foram realizados três estudos. O Estudo I investigou a relação entre diferentes dimensões do afeto (estado afetivo positivo/negativo, depressão e neuroticismo) e características do relato de eventos autobiográficos (especificidade e coerência narrativa de eventos). Nesse estudo, 78 estudantes universitários relataram por escrito três eventos autobiográficos e responderam aos instrumentos: 1) Inventário de Depressão de Beck (BDI); 2) Escala de Afetos Positivos e Negativos (PANAS); e 3) Escala Fatorial de Ajustamento Emocional/Neuroticismo (EFN). O Estudo II investigou a relação entre escore de depressão e variáveis verbais (prosódia e coerência narrativa), verificando também se existem diferenças no padrão prosódico-narrativo da depressão nãomelancólica e melancólica. Participaram 17 pacientes com diagnóstico de depressão, avaliados através dos seguintes instrumentos: 1) Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI-Plus), 2) Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D); 3) Beck Depression Inventory – BDI); 4) The CORE Assessment of Psychomotor Change, e 5) Relato verbal de três eventos de vida. O Estudo III teve como objetivo avaliar diferenças na atividade motora entre indivíduos com depressão melancólica e não-melancólica. A amostra foi composta por 15 pacientes com diagnóstico de depressão. A severidade dos sintomas depressivos foi avaliada utilizando a HAM-D e o BDI. O CORE foi utilizado para avaliar a melancolia, e a atividade motora foi mensurada através de actigrafia. Os resultados da tese sugerem uma revisão da noção de que afetos mais prolongados teriam maior impacto em variáveis narrativas, dado que o estado afetivo foi o único preditor da coerência narrativa. Concluiu-se que a recordação de eventos inespecíficos e a dificuldade de reavaliação de experiências constituem mecanismos basais na depressão, explicando a persistência de memórias dolorosas e crenças negativas inflexíveis. A melancolia caracterizou-se por uma diminuição na movimentação do corpo e na amplitude da frequência vocal, atestando a lentificação do movimento como um critério crucial para a identificação do subtipo melancólico de depressão. / This dissertation is organized around the following question: what characterizes the autobiographical narrative, vocal, and motor expression in depression and its melancholic and non-melancholic subtileza? In order to investigate this question, three studies were performed. Study I investigated the relationship between different dimensions of affect (positive and negative affective state, depression, and neuroticism) and some features of autobiographical narrative (specificity, and narrative coherence of events). In this study, 78 college students wrote three autobiographical events and answered to three instruments: 1) Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), 2) Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS); and 3) Factorial Scale of Neuroticism (EFN). Study II investigated: 1) the relationship between the depression score, and verbal variables (prosody and narrative coherence); and 2) differences in the prosodicnarrative pattern of individuals with non-melancholic and with melancholic depression. The sample consisted of 17 patients with major depressive disorder, who were assessed using the following instruments: 1) Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI-Plus), 2) Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), 3) Beck Depression Inventory - BDI), 4) The CORE Assessment of Psychomotor Change, and 5) Verbal report of three life events. Study III aimed to evaluate differences in motor activity between individuals with melancholic and non-melacholic depression. The sample was composed by 15 patients with diagnostic of major depressive episode. The measurement of the severity of depressive symptoms was made using the HAM-D and BDI. The CORE instrument was used to assess melancholia, and motor activity was measured by actigraphy. Altogether, the three studies that compose this dissertation suggest a revision of the notion that long lasting affects would have major impact on narrative variables, once the affective state was the only predictor of narrative coherence. We conclude that the recollection of nonspecific events and ressignification impairment are core mechanisms in depression, explaining the persistence of painful memories and inflexible negative beliefs. The melancholia was characterized by a decrease in body movement and amplitude of vocal frequency, confirming that lentification of movement is a crucial criteria for melancholic subtype of depression.

A entoação pode ser decomposta em componentes estruturadoras (finalização e sustentação) e, também, semântico-funcionais (foco/ênfase e acento lexical). A proposta assumida pelo grupo de pesquisa ExProsodia, baseada nos estudos de Xu e Wang (1997), permite a análise isolada de cada uma das componentes de F0. Neste estudo tratamos das componentes estruturadoras, especificamente, do estudo da finalização (F). O trabalho tem como objetivo, primeiro, analisar por meio de testes de percepção o que os sujeitos falantes do português brasileiro (doravante PB) julgam ser um final de frase assertiva. Depois, é nosso propósito analisar se os dados perceptivos fornecidos pelos ouvintes coincidem com aqueles disponibilizados pela análise automática obtida por meio da rotina ExProsodia®. É nosso intento, ainda, verificar se, no que tange à percepção dos procedimentos de segmentação frasal com propósito de finalização, é observada a sequência finalizadora proposta por Ferreira Netto (2008), acrescida da hipótese de Consoni et al (2009) e Consoni (2011). Este estudo visa integrar a coletânea de trabalhos desenvolvidos pelo Grupo de pesquisa ExProsodia - Análise automática da entoação na fala de língua portuguesa, linha de pesquisa na área de Percepção de Prosódia sob a orientação do Prof. Dr. Waldemar Ferreira Netto. Elaboramos dois testes. No primeiro teste foram apresentadas nove frases (três frases sem manipulação e seis manipuladas). As frases não manipuladas são, ao longo deste trabalho, mencionadas como frases modelos. As seis frases manipuladas foram subdivididas em dois conjuntos de três frases cada: a de frases monotonais e as frases manipuladas de modo que entre o tom médio (TM) e o tom de finalização (TF) houvesse uma distância de 7st. Nomeamos as primeiras frases como frases neutras e as segundas, frases hipóteses. No segundo teste foram apresentadas seis frases (somente as frases manipuladas, ou seja, as frases neutras e as frases hipóteses). Cada vez que o participante ouvia uma frase era solicitado a este que indicasse se a frase, de acordo com a sua percepção, estava ou não finalizada. Foram dadas duas opções de resposta aos ouvintes: sim, a frase está finalizada ou não, a frase não está finalizada. Os testes foram aplicados em 20 ouvintes de ambos os sexos, com idade entre 18 e 55 anos, todos com escolaridade entre nível médio e nível superior. Os resultados do teste 1 indiciam que as porcentagens dos ouvintes que consideram as frases neutras como não finalizadas sempre foram altas e mantiveram-se, em sua grande maioria, na casa dos 80%. Ademais, o produto da análise das frases hipóteses corrobora os dados dos trabalhos já citados. (CONSONI; FERREIRA NETTO, 2008; CONSONI et al., 2008; CONSONI et al., 2009 e CONSONI, 2011; FERREIRA NETTO, 2006, 2008; ROSA 2009). A análise do teste 2 fora efetuada por meio da teoria da detecção de sinais (TDS) (GREEN; SWETS, 1966; MACMILLAN; CREELMAN, 2005; ADBI, 2007). Ao fazer uso da TDS, pretendemos estimar a força da sensibilidade perceptiva de cada participante do teste 2. O valor dessa força é dada pelo cálculo do dee-prime. Os resultados do teste 2 apontaram dee-primes de três categorias diferentes, a saber: alto; médio e baixo. As respostas da grande maioria dos participantes situaram-se entre uma facilidade extrema e média de discriminar as frases finalizadas e as não finalizadas. / The intonation can be decomposed into structuring components (finalization and support component) and also semantic-functional components (focus / emphasis and lexical stress). The proposal assumed by ExProsodia rechearch group, based on the studies of Xu and Wang (1997), it allows separate analysis of each component of F0. In this study we treat structuring components, specifically, the study of finalization (F). The study aims, first, to analyze through perception tests which Brazilian Portuguese (henceforth PB) speakers think that is the ending of declarative sentences. It is our intent also verify if the finalization sequence proposed by Ferreira Netto (2008), plus the assumption of Consoni et al. (2009) e Consoni (2011) is observed. And lastly, our purpose is to inspect whether perceptual data match with those provided by automatic analysis obtained by routine ExProsodia®. This study aims to integrate a collection of work done by the research group ExProsodia - Automatic analysis of intonation in the speech of the Portuguese language, research line in the area of Perception of Prosody under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Waldemar Ferreira Netto. We developed two tests. In the first test, nine sentences were presented to the Brazilian Portuguese listeners (three sentences without manipulation and six manipulated). Non-manipulated sentences, throughout this work, as mentioned as models sentences. The six manipulated sentences were subdivided into two groups of three sentences each one: the monotonous sentences and manipulated sentences. The last one is manipulated so that between the medium tone (MT) and the finalization tone (FT) there is a distance of 7 semitones. We named first sentences as neutral sentences and the others as hypothesis sentences. At the second test, six sentences (only manipulated sentences, i.e. neutral sentences and hypothesis sentences) were presented to Brazilian Portuguese listeners. Each time the participant heard a sentence, he was requested to indicate whether that sentence, according to their perception, or was not finalized. Two response options were given to listeners: yes, the sentence is finished or not, the sentence is not finished. 20 listeners of both sexes, aged between 18 and 55 years, all with education among middle and senior level have participated of the test. The test results indicate that percentages of listeners who consider neutral sentences as unfinished sentences were always high and remained, mostly at around 80%. Moreover, the product of the analysis of hypothesis sentences corroborates data of the work already cited. (CONSONI; FERREIRA NETTO, 2008; CONSONI et al., 2008; CONSONI et al., 2009 e CONSONI, 2011; FERREIRA NETTO, 2006, 2008; ROSA 2009). The analysis of the test 2 has carried out by the signal detection theory (SDT) (GREEN; SWETS, 1966; MACMILLAN; Creelman, 2005; ADBI, 2007). By making use of the TDS, we intend to estimate the strength of the perceptual sensitivity of each participant of the test 2. Results showed dee-primes in three different categories, namely: high; medium and low. The responses of the majority of participants were between one extreme and mean facility to discriminate the finished and unfinished sentences.

A presente tese se organiza em torno da seguinte questão: o que caracteriza a expressão autobiográfica, narrativa, vocal e motora na depressão e seus subtipos melancólica e não-melancólica? A fim de investigar esta questão, foram realizados três estudos. O Estudo I investigou a relação entre diferentes dimensões do afeto (estado afetivo positivo/negativo, depressão e neuroticismo) e características do relato de eventos autobiográficos (especificidade e coerência narrativa de eventos). Nesse estudo, 78 estudantes universitários relataram por escrito três eventos autobiográficos e responderam aos instrumentos: 1) Inventário de Depressão de Beck (BDI); 2) Escala de Afetos Positivos e Negativos (PANAS); e 3) Escala Fatorial de Ajustamento Emocional/Neuroticismo (EFN). O Estudo II investigou a relação entre escore de depressão e variáveis verbais (prosódia e coerência narrativa), verificando também se existem diferenças no padrão prosódico-narrativo da depressão nãomelancólica e melancólica. Participaram 17 pacientes com diagnóstico de depressão, avaliados através dos seguintes instrumentos: 1) Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI-Plus), 2) Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D); 3) Beck Depression Inventory – BDI); 4) The CORE Assessment of Psychomotor Change, e 5) Relato verbal de três eventos de vida. O Estudo III teve como objetivo avaliar diferenças na atividade motora entre indivíduos com depressão melancólica e não-melancólica. A amostra foi composta por 15 pacientes com diagnóstico de depressão. A severidade dos sintomas depressivos foi avaliada utilizando a HAM-D e o BDI. O CORE foi utilizado para avaliar a melancolia, e a atividade motora foi mensurada através de actigrafia. Os resultados da tese sugerem uma revisão da noção de que afetos mais prolongados teriam maior impacto em variáveis narrativas, dado que o estado afetivo foi o único preditor da coerência narrativa. Concluiu-se que a recordação de eventos inespecíficos e a dificuldade de reavaliação de experiências constituem mecanismos basais na depressão, explicando a persistência de memórias dolorosas e crenças negativas inflexíveis. A melancolia caracterizou-se por uma diminuição na movimentação do corpo e na amplitude da frequência vocal, atestando a lentificação do movimento como um critério crucial para a identificação do subtipo melancólico de depressão. / This dissertation is organized around the following question: what characterizes the autobiographical narrative, vocal, and motor expression in depression and its melancholic and non-melancholic subtileza? In order to investigate this question, three studies were performed. Study I investigated the relationship between different dimensions of affect (positive and negative affective state, depression, and neuroticism) and some features of autobiographical narrative (specificity, and narrative coherence of events). In this study, 78 college students wrote three autobiographical events and answered to three instruments: 1) Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), 2) Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS); and 3) Factorial Scale of Neuroticism (EFN). Study II investigated: 1) the relationship between the depression score, and verbal variables (prosody and narrative coherence); and 2) differences in the prosodicnarrative pattern of individuals with non-melancholic and with melancholic depression. The sample consisted of 17 patients with major depressive disorder, who were assessed using the following instruments: 1) Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI-Plus), 2) Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D), 3) Beck Depression Inventory - BDI), 4) The CORE Assessment of Psychomotor Change, and 5) Verbal report of three life events. Study III aimed to evaluate differences in motor activity between individuals with melancholic and non-melacholic depression. The sample was composed by 15 patients with diagnostic of major depressive episode. The measurement of the severity of depressive symptoms was made using the HAM-D and BDI. The CORE instrument was used to assess melancholia, and motor activity was measured by actigraphy. Altogether, the three studies that compose this dissertation suggest a revision of the notion that long lasting affects would have major impact on narrative variables, once the affective state was the only predictor of narrative coherence. We conclude that the recollection of nonspecific events and ressignification impairment are core mechanisms in depression, explaining the persistence of painful memories and inflexible negative beliefs. The melancholia was characterized by a decrease in body movement and amplitude of vocal frequency, confirming that lentification of movement is a crucial criteria for melancholic subtype of depression.