On the communication process: Speaker-listener interaction and the development of speech*

The reason why humn a communication is so powerful is tied not only to language but also to the phenomenon of communicative empathy. When communication breaks down, the causes may be found in the signal, or the transmission channel linking sender and receiver. But it is important to recognize that they may also derive from the sender's failure to “take the receiver's point of view” and to adapt ot it constructively and in accordance with his communicative goals. This paper reviews current reseacrch in several research areas: The development of more natural voice quality in speech synthesizers for the vocally handicapped as well as experimental work on the production, perception and development of normal speech. On the basis of the evidence reviewed a model is presented that makes sender-receiver empathy and mutuality the key element of successful nondisabled as well as augmentative and alternative communication.