An Acoustic Analysis of Aspirated Plosives Produced by Pakistani Young Adult ESL Learners
Keywords:
phonetics, phonology, plosives, stops, aspiration, acoustic analysis, ESL speakers,Abstract
The research paper explores how Pakistani ESL learners produce aspirated plosives of English in different positions in words. It also analyzes the relation between the frequency difference (Δf) and the Voice onset timing (VOT) of the plosive. Finally, it also aims to explore the problems and challenges faced by the ESL learner in the production of aspirated plosives. The data were collected from voice recordings of 25 ESL learners aged 20-25. It was a mixed-methods study, analyzed using Praat and SPSS. The majority of the participants produced partial voicing before aspiration and long-lag VOTs at the middle position. There was a mainly positive correlation between both variables, but it was not linear. It highlights how L2 speech is a cognitive process and a mean of social identity.
