Parallel Encoding of Focus and Interrogative Meaning in Mandarin Intonation

Abstract

Despite much research, disagreements abound regarding the detailed charac-teristicsof question intonation in different languages or even in the same language.The present study investigates question intonation in Mandarin by also consideringthe role of focus that is frequently ignored in previous research. In experiment 1,native speakers of Mandarin produced statements, yes/no questions, particle ques-tions,wh-questions, rhetorical questions and confirmation questions with narrowfocus on the initial, medial or final word of the sentence, or on none of the words.Detailed F0 contour analyses showed that focus generated the same pitch rangemodification in questions as in statements, i.e., expanding the pitch range of thefocused word, suppressing (compressing and lowering) that of the post-focuswords, but leaving that of the pre-focus words largely unaffected. When the effects offocus (as well as other functions also potentially present) were controlled by sub-tractingstatement F0 contours from those of the corresponding yes/no questions,the resulting difference curves resembled exponential or even double-exponentialfunctions. Further F0 analyses also revealed an interaction between focus andinterrogative meaning in the form of a boost to the pitch raising by the question start-ingfrom the focused word. Finally, subtle differences in the amount of pitch raisingwere also observed among different types of questions, especially at the sentence-finalposition. Experiment 2 investigated whether listeners could detect both focusand question in the same utterance. Results showed that listeners could identifyboth in most cases, indicating that F0 variations related to the two functions could besimultaneously transmitted. Meanwhile, the lowest identification rates were foundfor neutral focus in questions and for statements with final focus. In both cases, theconfusions seemed to arise from the competing F0 adjustments by interrogativemeaning and focus at the sentence-final position. These findings are consistent withthe functional view of intonation, according to which components of intonation aredefined and organized by individual communicative functions that are independentof each other but are encoded in parallel.