Voice assistants have become an integral part of daily life for many Americans, with nearly half of the population using digital voice assistants primarily on their smartphones. These voice assistants, such as Alexa, Siri, and Cortana, have revolutionized the way people interact with technology and access information.
Research has shown that the way parents speak to infants, known as motherese or infant-directed speech, plays a crucial role in language development. Studies have also explored acoustic regularities in infant-directed speech across different cultures and languages, highlighting universal prosodic features.
Recent studies have delved into the acoustic features of infant-directed speech, comparing it to foreigner-directed speech and exploring adjustments in speech rate and pitch variation. The evolution of human-computer interaction has also been studied, focusing on voice anthropomorphism, interlocutor modeling, and alignment effects on syntactic choices in human-computer dialogue.
Further research has investigated the differences in speech behavior when interacting with devices compared to humans, as well as the impact of gender stereotyping on perceptions of voice assistants. Studies have also explored the role of prosodic alignment in conversations with voice assistants and the influence of voice assistants on children’s speech recognition and interactions.
Overall, these studies shed light on the complex dynamics of human interaction with voice assistants, the importance of prosodic cues in communication, and the evolving role of technology in shaping social behaviors and language development. The findings provide valuable insights into the potential implications of voice assistants in various contexts and highlight the need for further research in this rapidly evolving field.
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