DiapixUK: task materials for the elicitation of multiple spontaneous speech dialogs

The renewed focus of attention on investigating spontaneous speech samples in speech and language research has increased the need for recordings of speech in interactive settings. The DiapixUK task is a new and extended set of picture materials based on the Diapix task by Van Engen et al. (Language and Speech, 53, 510-540, 2010), where two people are recorded while conversing to solve a 'spot the difference' task. The new task materials allow for multiple recordings of the same speaker pairs due to a larger set of picture pairs that have a number of tested features: equal difficulty across all 12 picture pairs, no learning effect of completing more than one picture task and balanced contributions from both speakers. The new materials also provide extra flexibility, making them useful in a wide range of research projects; they are multi-layered electronic images that can be adapted to suit different research needs. This article presents details of the development of the DiapixUK materials, along with data taken from a large corpus of spontaneous speech that are used to demonstrate its new features. Current and potential applications of the task are also discussed.