Comparing Acoustic Duration Differences in Jamaican Bilingual Preschoolers With and Without Possible Speech Sound Disorder

This study compared the acoustic speech patterns in English for two groups of 4-year-old Jamaican bilingual preschoolers, typically developing (TD) and suspected of presenting with speech sound disorder (sSSDs). Factors such as assigned sex, Jamaican Creole (JC)/English exposure, and JC/English use were also investigated. Data were collected in Kingston, Jamaica, and New York City, United States, from 2013 through 2019. Participants ( n = 102) were JC/English-speaking bilingual 4-year-old preschoolers (TD: n = 66; sSSD: n = 36). The acoustic durational features (voice onset time [VOT], vowel, whole-word, and proportion of vowel-to-whole-word duration) of participants’ English productions were analyzed. These analyses provide insight into these groups' speech production mechanisms and bilingual language development characteristics. Both groups produced similar acoustic durational features. However, the TD group demonstrated greater VOT variability than the sSSD group. Exposure to JC predicted the proportion of vowel-to-whole-word duration for the sSSD group. The analysis of Jamaican preschoolers’ English speech duration patterns, both typical and atypical, revealed few significant acoustic duration differences. Due to JC-specific lengthening features, reliance on durational features may not be sufficient for SSD diagnosis.