Static Measurements of Vowel Formant Frequencies and Bandwidths: A Review

Publication date: Available online 1 June 2018
Source:Journal of Communication Disorders
Author(s): Raymond D. Kent, Houri K. Vorperian
PurposeData on vowel formants have been derived primarily from static measures representing an assumed steady state. This review summarizes data on formant frequencies and bandwidths for American English and also addresses (a) sources of variability (focusing on speech sample and time sampling point), and (b) methods of data reduction such as vowel area and dispersion.MethodSearches were conducted with CINAHL, Google Scholar, MEDLINE/PubMed, SCOPUS, and other online sources including legacy articles and references. The primary search items were vowels, vowel space area, vowel dispersion, formants, formant frequency, and formant bandwidth.ResultsData on formant frequencies and bandwidths are available for both sexes over the lifespan, but considerable variability in results across studies affects even features of the basic vowel quadrilateral. Origins of variability likely include differences in speech sample and time sampling point. The data reveal the emergence of sex differences by 4 years of age, maturational reductions in formant bandwidth, and decreased formant frequencies with advancing age in some persons. It appears that a combination of methods of data reduction provide for optimal data interpretation.ConclusionThe lifespan database on vowel formants shows considerable variability within



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