R-schwa reversal post-/p/ in American English

This study investigates a variation in Standard American English: the reversal of the unstressed mid-central vowel and /ɹ/ in word-initial syllables beginning with /p/, such that [pɹə] → [pÉš] as in: production → “perduction,” predict → “perdict.” We test the hypothesis that the variation is motivated by reduction of the first syllable, resulting in “pre” and “per” being pronounced similarly in reduction-favoring environments. This hypothesis predicts that “pre” and “per” are less likely to be pronounced similarly in infrequent words and under prosodic focus. Stimuli included 32 multisyllabic target words with unstressed “pre-” or “per-” as initial syllables. Two sentences were created for each target word: one with the target word in prosodic focus and the other out-of-focus. The 64 resulting sentences were read aloud by participants (23 undergraduate students). Acoustic measures of vowel quality and /ɹ/ articulation across the syllable were taken (average F3–F2 at the midpoint of the sonorant interval and center of gravity). These measures were analyzed for interaction between word type (“pre” or “per”) and frequency/prosodic focus. Results support the reduction hypothesis: “pre-” words are pronounced more like “per-” words in frequent words/when not under prosodic focus than in infrequent words/under prosodic focus.