Comparing token-based and trajectory-based vowel space metrics for assessing speech in Parkinson’s disease

Abstract

This study assessed the ability of three acoustic measures of vowel space, two token-based and one trajectory-based, to quantify speech differences in people with Parkinson’s disease compared to controls and correlations with speech intelligibility. Fifty-six speakers (28 people with Parkinson’s and 28 controls) read a custom reading passage containing corner vowels. For token-based measures, the triangular vowel space area (tVSA) in kHz 2 and the unitless ratio of vowel articulation index (VAI) were calculated. For the trajectory-based measure, the articulatory-acoustic vowel space (AAVS) in kHz 2 was calculated. Speakers also read five unique sentences varying in word length, which were used to collect speech intelligibility ratings. Analyses of Variance revealed that all vowel space measures yielded group differences. Binary logistic regression revealed that only the token-based measures were able to statistically discriminate PwPD from controls, however all models performed poorly (R 2  < 0.113). Linear regressions showed that token-based metrics were statistically related to intelligibility and that the VAI yielded the best model for the current sample. The results support that token-based measures are well-suited for quantifying changes in acoustic vowel space and perceived speech intelligibility in people with Parkinson’s. Future work should examine the generalizability of these findings to other motor speech disorders as well as across different speech stimuli.