Understanding of speech characteristics in autism spectrum disorder

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K22676
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Research Activity Start-up
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: 0704:Neuroscience, brain sciences, and related fields
• Research Institution: The University of Tokyo
• Principal Investigator: Daikoku Tatsuya 東京大学, ニューロインテリジェンス国際研究機構, 特任助教 (60886464)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-09-11 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 当事者化 / 音声リズム / 階層性 / 気づき

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study investigated the phonological hierarchy during conversations between individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and typically developed individuals (TD). The results showed that the speech rhythm of TD speech and TD-directed speech, as well as ASD speech and ASD-directed speech, were similar. These findings suggested that the TD individuals who noticed the speech characteristics of the participants (interlocutors) adjust their own speech to match the speech characteristics of their interlocutors, including those with ASD. These results were submitted to an academic journal as an English-language paper, and are currently under review (minor revision). The paper under review has also been submitted as a preprint (PsyArxiv, 10.31234/osf.io/4agcw).

Free Research Field

音声解析，神経生理学，音楽，機械学習

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

我々は皆，様々な個性や価値観を理解し合い，共に多様性社会を築いていく社会的当事者である．しかし，現代社会では多くの物事(災害や芸術)に対して多数派に合わせて価値が決定され，当事者-非当事者間で価値(観)のずれが生じてしまっている．このずれによって，歴史や文化，個性が正しく理解されず少数派を生きづらくするといった問題が起こっている． 本研究は，当事者の発話特性が自身と違うことに「気づく」ことで，どのように当事者化されていくのかを明らかにした．本研究を通して、皆が社会的当事者として真に個性や価値観を共有し合える多様性社会へ貢献できるかもしれない．