Syllables – A Myth of Universality in Linguistics

Stripped to its very basics, rules of English phonetics can seem pretty universal among speakers. We can all distinguish between consonants like b and m, we can all hear the difference between a whisper and a shout, and we can all divide speech into syllables, even if it might require clapping our hands a bit.

Except that last part might not be as universal as you might think.

I was 8 years old when we were taught syllables in school. While all the other kids would clap along and split words like pea/nut and foot/ball, I wouldn’t. Not because I didn’t want to, but because I couldn’t hear what they heard. I couldn’t hear syllables. At age 27, I might know why.

Autism.

The human brain is quite incredible. As explained by the Queensland Brain Institute, it contains about 100 billion neurons that work together to control everything from our movements to our personality. Neurons are able to communicate through synapses that form junctions in-between them, allowing signals to pass throughout the brain. Here’s an example: you’ve done your taxes and feel quite happy about it. The ‘reward system’ of your brain activates and your neurons begin to transmit dopamine, the ‘feel good’ hormone, across your neural network. As a result, you feel pretty good about having done your taxes. Thanks to neurons and brain connectivity, we can also use different parts of our brain at the same time. Imagine not being able to walk and talk simultaneously, you would either have to walk or talk.

How autistic brains work

However, if you’re diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (or ASD for a shorter term), your brain is wired a bit differently. A 2024 study released by Yale School of Medicine shows that the brains of autistic adults possess fewer synapses. An article published by Carey Rossi (2022) also elaborates that synapses in the autistic brain are structured differently than in the neurotypical brain; while autistic brains are well-connected in specific brain regions, the same can’t be said for connections between brain regions. So, if a task requires combining and using different parts of the brain at the same time, the autistic brain might struggle. However, if a task is focused around using a single brain region, it excels.

Understanding and processing language happens to be an activity that requires multiple parts of the brain. Two of them are Broca’s area and Wernicke’s area, the first being placed in the front of the brain and the latter further back.

In an experiment done by Marcel Just and his colleagues in 2004, it was shown that activity in exactly these areas of the brain differed between neurotypical and autistic research participants; the autistic group produced more activity in Wernicke’s area and less activity in Broca’s area than the neurotypical group.

While it can be tricky to determine what can be concluded from these findings, it can be said that language processing works differently when you’ve got autism. The question is, is this the case for the syllable-problem?

Syllable detection in adults with autism

In 2016, researchers at the University of Lincoln and the University of Portsmouth did a study regarding the detection of syllable stress in adults with autism. 42 native adult English speakers were divided into two equally sized groups; one consisted of autistic individuals and the other of neurotypical individuals. Each participant would listen to two samples of a four-syllable word: one with stress emphasis upon the first syllable position and one with stress emphasis on the second syllable position, like in AUditory and auDItory. Participants then had to make an evaluation – was the position of syllable stress in the pair different or the same? Interestingly, not only was the autism group significantly less sensitive to detection of syllable stress, but individual performances by the autistic participants were much varied too.

What this speaks to is that autism is a spectrum, also within language and speaking. Some autistic people might speak quite slowly, others quickly. Some speak loudly, others softly. Some repeat words, others say nothing at all. Autism is an incredibly difficult topic to research because it’s not something that can fit neatly into a box. Though, this doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth studying. In fact, researching how neurodiversity impacts the use and understanding of language is more important than ever. In western societies, more and more people are getting a diagnosis, whether it’s in the shape of ADHD, autism, anxiety, depression, or something completely different. Thus, treating neurotypical perceptions of language as the norm doesn’t reflect where we are as a society.

We don’t always know what is universal and what isn’t. One man’s norm can be the other man’s exception. That’s why it’s so important to include a wide variety of voices in academics, including those of autistic people.

Further reading:

Though I have a BA in Media Studies and an MA in Journalism from Aarhus University, I’m nowhere near done with the world of academia. This summer, I’ll apply for a PhD at the AU English Department, the purpose being the exploration of female autism in English-speaking media. My sneaking suspicion is that television & film don’t do a great job of portraying female autism, as they might rely too much on stereotypical male behaviour and neglect to show the female experience. I’m also currently studying English as a BA, where I still struggle with syllables.

Description, theory and linguistics as a science – an interview with William B. McGregor My favorite popularizing book about linguistics (after “Limits of Language”, that is) Lingolit II – Linguistics in the pop press Experimental and Edgy Linguistics Somethingness: Sexy Syntax, Phenomenal Phonology, Phonetic Phenomenology, and Not Giving a Fuck Learning about language by creating a language – a fun and creative approach to teaching linguistics Book review: Before the Linguistics Wars, was there peace? An edition of the correspondence between Hugo Schuchardt (linguist) and Gaston Paris (philologist)