Imitation of suprasegmental patterns by five-year-old children with adequate and inadequate articulation

Ten five-year-old children with adequate articulation skills and 10 five-year-old children with inadequate articulation skills were administered the Templin-Darley Test of Articulation and the Test of Rhythm and Intonation Patterns (TRIP). Differences between the adequate and inadequate groups in terms of the mean percentage correct and the correlations between TRIP and Templin-Darley Test scores within groups were statistically nonsignificant. Item analysis revealed no differences between groups in the pattern of performance on the three subtests of the TRIP or on specific test items. The possible effects of therapy enrollment on suprasegmental test performance are discussed, and future research needs are suggested.