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Vowel length in infant-directed speech: the realisation of short-long contrasts in Czech IDS
Svoboda, Michaela ; Chládková, Kateřina ; Kocjančič Antolík, T. ; Paillereau, Nikola ; Slížková, P.
When interacting with young children, talkers across many languages use a speech style that reflects positive affect, draws infants' attention, and supposedly facilitates language acquisition. As for the latter, a well-documented feature of infant-directed speech is an exaggeration of spectrally-cued vowel contrasts. Here we tested whether talkers exaggerate also durationally cued contrasts. Sixty-three mothers, native speakers of Czech, were recorded while playing with their infant (4- to 10-month-olds, IDS) and while speaking to an adult (ADS). The durations of the five Czech phonemically short vowels were compared to their long counterparts. Vowel duration (normalised for word duration) was longer in IDS than in ADS more for phonemically long vowels at the younger infant ages, indicating a developmentally specific early exaggeration of length contrasts in Czech infant-directed speech. The present finding suggests that in a language with phonemic length, caregivers' realisation of speech sounds may go beyond merely being longer and slower overall.
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Infants' learning of novel segments is modulated by prosody
Chládková, Kateřina ; Podlipský, V.J. ; Nudga, Natalia ; Paillereau, Nikola ; Kynčlová, Kateřina ; Šimáčková, Š.
Young infants recognize atypical realisations of native-language speech. Later they learn words better from native-accented talkers. However, 6-month-olds preferentially listen to unfamiliar speech. We tested whether the learning of new vowels matches 6-month-olds’ listening preferences, being more effective from nonnative-accented speech. We exposed Czech six-month-olds to delexicalised utterances with consonants replaced by [f] and vowels by 405 tokens sampled from a bimodal [ɛ]-[æ] distribution, a contrast absent from Czech, and with either native or atypical rhythm. Discrimination of [ɛ]-[æ] was then tested in an alternating/non-alternating paradigm. Longer first-look duration to non-alternating than to alternating trials – indicating a learning effect – was found in infants familiarised with the novel contrast in atypical rhythm, such effect was not\ndetected after familiarisation with native rhythm. Six-month-olds thus more effectively exploit distributional information about novel vowels from non-native rhythm, which matches their previously reported preferences for listening to novel over familiar accents.
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Exploring the Contribution of Isochrony-based Features to Computerized Assessment of Handwriting Disabilities
Gavenčiak, M. ; Zvončák, V. ; Mekyska, J. ; Šafárová, Katarína ; Čunek, Lukáš ; Urbánek, Tomáš ; Havigerová, Jana Marie ; Bednářová, Jiřina ; Galáž, Z. ; Mucha, J.
Approximately 30–60 % of the time children spend in school is associated with handwriting. However, up to 30 % of them experience handwriting disabilities (HD), which lead to a decrease in their academic performance. Current HD assessment methods are not unified and show signs of subjectivity which can lead to misdiagnosis. The aim of this paper is to propose a new approach to objective HD assessment based on the principle of movement isochrony. For this purpose, we used a database of 137 children attending a primary school, who performed a transcription and dictation task, and who were associated with a BHK (Concise Evaluation Scale for Children's Handwriting) score. Employing a machine learning model, we were able to estimate this score with 18 % error. An interpretation of the model suggests that the isochrony-based features could bring new benefits to the objective assessment of HD.
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Organizational climate, competing values and employee well-being
Zábrodská, K. ; Mudrák, J. ; Machovcová, Kateřina ; Cidlinská, Kateřina
The concept of organizational climate may facilitate an understanding of relationships between work environment and employee well-being. In the paper, we present a research project focusing on organizational climates at academic workplaces and their relationship with employee well-being. We implemented the Competing Values model as the theoretical framework and a mixed-methods research design including large-scale questionnaire study and in-depth interviews. Based on k-means cluster analysis of the questionnaire data, we identified four types of organizational climate (“self-actualizing”, “collegial”, “performance”, “fraternity”) localized in the dimensions of the Competing Values model (flexibility-control, internal-external focus). We found significant differences between the ways in which members of these types perceived their work environment and well-being. Based on the interviews we discuss some psychosocial processes taking place between different organizational climates and employee well-being.
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Connections of Posttraumatic Stress and Growth in Childhood Cancer Survivors and Their Parents
Koutná, Veronika ; Blatný, Marek ; Jelínek, Martin ; Vobořil, Dalibor
Posttraumatic stress (PTS) and growth (PTG) have been described in both childhood cancer survivors and their parents. This study aims to analyse the parent-child connections in self- reported PTS and PTG as well as the concordance of child self-reported and parent proxy- reported PTG. The sample included 142 parent-child dyads. Both survivors and parents self- reported PTS and PTG. Parents also proxy-reported PTG in their child. Correlations were performed between self-reported measures of PTS and PTG as well as parent proxy-report of PTG in the child. Parent proxy-reports of PTG in their child are more strongly related to parental own PTG than to PTG self-reported by the child. Parental PTS and PTG are correlated, but in survivors, PTS and PTG are not related. Parent proxy-reports of PTG in their child may reflect their own PTG rather than PTG of their child. The relationship between PTG and PTS in the context of childhood cancer differs depending on the reporter (parent/child).
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Relationship of Posttraumatic Stress and Growth with Quality of Life in Childhood Cancer Survivors
Koutná, Veronika ; Blatný, Marek ; Jelínek, Martin ; Vobořil, Dalibor
Childhood cancer is an event with the potential for both posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and posttraumatic growth (PTG). While full PTSD is rare in childhood cancer survivors, PTG is common in this population. The relationship between posttraumatic stress (PTS) and PTG has not yet been clearly established, and the relationship between PTG and quality of life (QOL) is unclear. In a group of 188 childhood cancer survivors, we used correlation analysis to determine the relationship of PTS/PTG with specific dimensions of QOL. In the younger group (up to 12 years), the QOL correlated only with PTS, the connection with PTG was not proven. In the older group (from 13 years), QOL correlated with PTS and PTG, but correlations were stronger for PTS. The relationship between PTS and QOL was negative in both groups, the relationships between PTG and QOL in the older group was weakly positive. The relationship of PTG and successful adaptation and good QOL remains questionable.
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Transforming life experience: proposal of a conceptual framework and approach to analysis
Chrz, Vladimír ; Dubovská, Eva ; Poláčková Šolcová, Iva
This contribution outlines a conceptual framework and analytic tools to be used in research of how people experience crises and growth in their middle age. The starting point is narrative hermeneutic approach. Transformative experience is treated in terms of a ‘story of change’, which emerges from narrative enactment (biographical work). Key concepts are ‘trouble’ and ‘narrative transformation’, which is what narrative does with the trouble. In analysis of crisis and growth in middle age, we employ categories of narrative analysis: transformation, agency, values and convictions, reflectivity and narrative positioning. The proposed conceptual framework and analysis are illustrated using examples from previous studies (stories of change in the course of psychotherapy).
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Psychosocial functioning among people experiencing developmental transition in young adulthood
Millová, Katarína ; Blatný, Marek
Theoretical background: In the research, we studied the psychosocial context of the developmental transition during young adulthood. We stem from the Arnett´s model of emerging adulthood, where we focused on the dimension of feeling „in between” (subjective developmental status). Objectives: The aim of the study was to compare young people with different subjectively perceived developmental status with respect to the characteristics of psychosocial functioning. Sample: The sample comprised 2025 university students (658 men) in emerging adulthood between 18-27 years (mean age 21.76 years) who participated in online research. Methods: In addition to subjectively perceived developmental status (feeling of immaturity – in between stage - full adulthood), we also examined emotional and social competences (SSI, Riggio & Carney, 2003), coping strategies (BriefCOPE, Carver, 1997) and planned life goals. Main findings: Young people who have subjectively experienced feeling of “in between” were different from immature and fully adult people, especially in areas of future life planning, emotional control and social sensitivity (SSI), and strategies of active coping, planning, humor, acceptance, denial, use of emotional and instrumental support, behavioral disengagement and self-blame (BriefCOPE).
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