Analysis of VOT Acoustic Parameters of Stops and Affricates in Mandarin for Adolescents

This study employs experimental phonetic methods and focuses on adolescent student populations as its research subject. By extracting the Voice Onset Time (VOT) acoustic parameter, a comparative analysis is conducted across various dimensions, including gender, age, place of articulation, and manner of articulation, to explore the phonetic characteristics of Mandarin stop and affricate within this group. The results show that: (1) The VOT value for affricate is greater than that for stops, and the VOT value for aspirated stop/affricate is greater than that for non-aspirated stop/affricate. Furthermore, the mean VOT for the female group was higher than that for the male group. (2) The statistical differences in VOT values between genders vary depending on age, type of stop, and affricate. (3) The statistical differences in VOT values for aspirated stops/fricatives, as well as non-aspirated stops b and g, primarily exist between the lower age group ($\mathbf{Z 1} \backslash \mathbf{Z 2} \backslash Z 3$) and the higher age group (Z5\ Z6); The VOT values for non-aspirated affricate d showed no significant differences among age groups, and the significant differences in VOT values of non-aspirated affricate among age groups were relatively complex.