The use of intonation for turn anticipation in observed conversations without visual signals as source of information

Abstract

The anticipation of a speaker's next turn is a key element of successful conversation. This can be achieved using a multitude of cues. In natural conversation, the most important cue for adults to anticipate the end of a turn (and therefore the beginning of the next turn) is the semantic and syntactic content. In addition, prosodic cues, such as intonation, or visual signals that occur before a speaker starts speaking (e.g., opening the mouth) help to identify the beginning and the end of a speaker's turn. Early in life, prosodic cues Show more