Deaffrication phonological process is the substitution of affricate sounds such as “ch” or “dj” with stop sounds, such as “p”, “b”, “t”, or “d”, or a fricative sounds, such as “s”, “z”, or “sh”. The deaffrication phonological process is a common speech sound error that occurs in young children’s speech development.
During the deaffrication phonological process, children may say words like:
- “cheese” becomes “sheesh”
- “chair” becomes “tair”
- “church” becomes “shurch”
- “jump” becomes “dump”
This phonological pattern is common in English-speaking children and is usually outgrown by 4 years old and could be considered a speech impediment past this age. Speech and language therapists (SLT) often work with children exhibiting the deaffrication phonological process past typical age to help them improve their articulation and pronunciation.
In this article, we will explore the deaffrication phonological process in detail, including its definition, other types of phonological processes, its impact on speech production, examples, age of disappearance, when it is considered a disorder, how to eliminate it, whether children outgrow phonological processes, and evidence-based speech therapy interventions.
What are examples?
Here are some common examples of deaffrication :
During the deaffrication phonological process, children may say words like:
- “treasure” becomes “measure”
- “chop” becomes “shop”
- “chair” becomes “tear”
- “chin” becomes “shin”
- “cherry” becomes “sherry”
- “jelly” becomes “zhelly”
- “juice” becomes “zhuice”
- “judge” becomes “zhudge”
- “joy” becomes “zhoy”
- “jam” becomes “zham”
These are only a few examples that illustrate how deaffrication beyond a typical age can be disruptive in a child trying to communicate and how speech therapy should be explore is deaffrication is suspected.
How do we treat or target deaffrication with speech therapy?
Deaffrication can be a target of speech therapy. SLTs work with individuals who struggle with certain phonological processes.
In therapy sessions, SLT help clients develop strategies to produce the correct sounds and minimize the occurrence of deaffrication.
Speech therapy for deaffrication may involve minimal pairs (i.e. two words that differ by only one sound, typically the target sound and the corresponding processed sound) or maximal pairs for:
- auditory discrimination (i.e. exercises to help children understand the diffrence between sounds)
- production (i.e. articulation of the various sounds in the right context)
What are deaffrication minimal pairs?
Minimal pairs are words that differ by only one phoneme (i.e. sound) and have different meanings. Minimal pairs can help highlight the importance of specific sounds in differentiating words for children who struggle beyond typical age with deaffrication.
For example, in English, the words “chip” and “ship” form a minimal pair. The first word contains the affricate “ch”, while the second word has the deaffricated fricative “sh” sound. The difference between the two sounds changes the entire meaning of the word.
SLTs use minimal pairs to treat deaffrication phonological process disorder.
We love the following free minimal pairs from Adventures in Speech Pathology:
- SH-CH Minimal Pairs Boom Cards by Adventures in Speech Pathology
- Minimal Pairs Interactive Book and Pictures by The Pedi Speechie
- SH-CH Minimal Pairs Activity by The Pedi Speechie
Comparing it to other phonological processes
Deaffrication is just one of several phonological processes that can occur in language. These processes involve the alteration of sounds and can be observed in different linguistic contexts.
One process closely related phonological process is affrication, where a fricative sound becomes an affricate. In contrast, affrication adds a “stop” element to the fricative sound, creating an affricate. Affrication is observed in words like “chip”, where the fricative “sh” sound transforms into the affricate “ch”.
Other phonological processes include assimilation, in which a sound becomes more similar to a nearby sound, and voicing or devoicing, which involves the modification of voicing distinctions in sounds, such as changing a voiced sound to a voiceless sound.
What is the difference between Affrication and Deaffrication?
Affrication and deaffrication are processes that modify how certain speech sounds are produced, specifically affricates, which are sounds that begin as stops and release into fricatives.
Affrication occurs when a fricative sound (like “f” or “s”) is altered by adding a brief stop at the beginning, turning it into an affricate (such as “ch” or “j”).
Example: In some cases, the “f” sound in “fish” might shift to a “ch” sound, changing how the word is pronounced.
Deaffrication is the opposite process, where the stop element of an affricate is removed, leaving only the fricative sound.
Example: In “church,” the “ch” sound might be simplified to a “sh” sound, altering the pronunciation to something closer to “shursh.”
These processes reflect changes in the way sounds are articulated, either adding or removing complexity from the original sound.
Do children outgrow deaffrication phonological process?
Many children do outgrow deaffrication phonological process as their speech develops and matures. Phonological processes are normal aspects of speech development in young children. These processes involve simplifying complex sounds or sound patterns to make speech production easier for the child.
While most children naturally outgrow these processes as they refine their speech skills, some children may continue to exhibit deaffrication phonological process past 4 years old and may require additional support and intervention.
Why do children use deaffrication?
Children may use deaffrication as part of their speech development. During language acquisition, children encounter complex sounds and may simplify them to aid pronunciation. Deaffrication can be observed as a simplification strategy when trying to produce affricates. If it persists beyond 4 years old, it may be a potential indicator of a speech disorder that requires professional intervention.
