Infant Speech Vowel And Consonant Types

Abstract

1622 records of infant speech produced by 95 infants from birth to 2.5 yrs. were studied by means of an equation derived from means of the vowel types of Vt = 5.42.40-27* and the equation derived from the means of the consonant types is Ct = 2.911 A0-6*2. During the 1st yr. the mean number of vowel types exceeds mean number of consonant types. After this, the situation is reversed. At 2.5 yrs. the infant possesses practically the full complement for vowels and 2/j of the full complement of consonants. It is suggested the equations may be considered the expressions of the 2 laws of phenome type development during infancy.