Asymmetries of consonant sequences in perception and production: affricates vs. /s/ clusters

This paper investigates the behavior of Greek affricates as opposed to other clusters consisting of /s/ + obstruent and obstruent + /s/ sequences. An experimental task testing the perception of /s/ clusters demonstrated a fixed preference for the preservation of affricates over obstruent +/s/ over /s/ + obstruent clusters. Subjects showed a strong tendency to break up consonantal sequences, while they retained affricates intact. This linguistic behavior is attributed to two factors: a) identity of place of articulation of the members of the examined consonantal sequences and b) satisfaction of the scale of consonantal strength in these sequences.