scholarly journals Individual differences in neural entrainment to rhythm predict spoken grammar skills in six-year-old children

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Valentina Persici ◽  
Scott D. Blain ◽  
John Rehner Iversen ◽  
Alexandra P. Key ◽  
Sonja A. Kotz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
Rhythm Perception ◽  
Musical Rhythm ◽  
Hierarchical Processing ◽  
Behavioral Rhythm ◽  
Grammatical Skills ◽  
Neural Entrainment ◽  
Complex Structural ◽  
Evoked Activity

Individual differences in rhythm perception skills play an important role in predicting individual differences in spoken grammar abilities, arguably because both meter and language are hierarchically-organized structures. Based on the idea that neural entrainment sustains attentional fluctuations that facilitate hierarchical processing in both domains, we hypothesized that individual differences in syntactic (grammatical) skills may be predicted by patterns of neural entrainment to musical rhythm. To test this hypothesis, we recorded neural activity using electroencephalography (EEG) while children (N = 25) listened passively to rhythmic patterns that differed in placement of the beat, using a paradigm that had previously shown to modulate beta and gamma band responses in adults. Analysis of evoked activity in these frequency bands showed that individual differences in the magnitude of neural responses to rhythm predicted variance in six-year-olds’ spoken expressive grammar abilities, over and above the contribution of their behavioral rhythm perception task performance. Variance in the EEG beta and gamma during rhythmic listening was predictive of children’s performance on items with complex structural dependencies, i.e., for which more refined grammatical abilities are required. These results reinforce the idea that mechanisms of neural entrainment to the beat may be a shared neural resource supporting hierarchical processing across music and language, and suggest a relevant brain marker of the relationship between rhythm processing and grammar abilities in elementary-school-age children, previously observed only behaviorally. These findings add to the literature on individual differences in music ability as predictors of child language and academic development.

scholarly journals Prosody perception in children: studying individual differences with novel brain and behavioral approaches

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brett Myers ◽  
Chloe Vaughan ◽  
Uma Soman ◽  
Scott Blain ◽  
Kylie Korsnack ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
General Mechanism ◽  
Speech Comprehension ◽  
Rhythm Perception ◽  
Neural Encoding ◽  
Musical Rhythm ◽  
Stimulus Reconstruction ◽  
Speech Envelope

AbstractA sizeable literature has shown that perception of prosodic elements bolsters speech comprehension across developmental stages; recent work also suggests that variance in musical aptitude predicts individual differences in prosody perception in adults. The current study investigates brain and behavioral methods of assessing prosody perception and tests the relationship with musical rhythm perception in 35 school-aged children (age range: 5;5 to 8;0 years, M = 6;7 years, SD = 10 months; 18 females). We applied stimulus reconstruction, a technique for analyzing EEG data by fitting a temporal response function that maps the neural response back to the sensory stimulus. In doing so, we obtain a measure of neural encoding of the speech envelope in passive listening to continuous narratives. We also present a behavioral prosody assessment that requires holistic judgments of filtered speech. The results from these typically developing children revealed that individual differences in stimulus reconstruction in the delta band, indexing neural synchrony to the speech envelope, are significantly related to individual differences in behavioral measurement of prosody perception. In addition, both of these measures are moderately to strongly correlated with musical rhythm perception skills. Results support a domain-general mechanism for cognitive processing of speech and music.Graphical Abstract

Deficits in musical rhythm perception in children with specific learning disabilities

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-7
Author(s):  
Vasudha Hande ◽  
Shantala Hegde
Keyword(s):  
Learning Disabilities ◽  
Learning Disability ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Phonological Processing ◽  
Specific Learning Disability ◽  
Specific Learning Disabilities ◽  
Target Language ◽  
Rhythm Perception ◽  
Musical Rhythm ◽  
Specific Learning

BACKGROUND: A specific learning disability comes with a cluster of deficits in the neurocognitive domain. Phonological processing deficits have been the core of different types of specific learning disabilities. In addition to difficulties in phonological processing and cognitive deficits, children with specific learning disability (SLD) are known to also found have deficits in more innate non-language-based skills like musical rhythm processing. OBJECTIVES: This paper reviews studies in the area of musical rhythm perception in children with SLD. An attempt was made to throw light on beneficial effects of music and rhythm-based intervention and their underlying mechanism. METHODS: A hypothesis-driven review of research in the domain of rhythm deficits and rhythm-based intervention in children with SLD was carried out. RESULTS: A summary of the reviewed literature highlights that music and language processing have shared neural underpinnings. Children with SLD in addition to difficulties in language processing and other neurocognitive deficits are known to have deficits in music and rhythm perception. This is explained in the background of deficits in auditory skills, perceptuo-motor skills and timing skills. Attempt has been made in the field to understand the effect of music training on the children’s auditory processing and language development. Music and rhythm-based intervention emerges as a powerful intervention method to target language processing and other neurocognitive functions. Future studies in this direction are highly underscored. CONCLUSIONS: Suggestions for future research on music-based interventions have been discussed.

Individual Differences in Young Children’s Spatial Ability: A Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nelcida Llissett Garcia ◽  
LaTreese Hall ◽  
Shannon M. Pruden
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Spatial Ability ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Mathematics Ability ◽  
Spatial Tasks ◽  
And Mathematics ◽  
Language Influence

Individual differences in children’s spatial ability, both intrinsic and extrinsic, emerge in early childhood, with preschool- and school-age children showing a great deal of variability on spatial tasks that continue throughout life. These individual differences are predictive of children’s mathematics ability and achievement, children’s science ability and achievement, and later entry and success in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Thus, the identification of factors that affect individual differences in and development of children’s spatial ability is not only important for the advancement of theory but may also help us to identify barriers to successful STEM achievement. There is extensive literature suggesting that child characteristics such as motor skill, working memory and executive function, spatial anxiety, spatial play, teacher characteristics such as spatial anxiety and spatial competence, and parent characteristics including their own spatial ability and production of spatial language influence children’s spatial ability. This systematic review aims to outline mechanisms that explain the development of individual differences in children’s intrinsic and extrinsic spatial ability. As part of this systematic review of current literature, we introduce a framework for how individual differences in children’s spatial thinking develops. Lastly, we will discuss limitations of the existing literature and suggest directions for future research.

Cognitive Outcomes in School-Age Children Born Prematurely

2003 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 27-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Deborah Winders Davis
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Developmental Outcomes ◽  
Cognitive Outcomes ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
Future Research ◽  
International Studies ◽  
School Age ◽  
Children At Risk ◽  
Attention Regulation

The purpose of this article is to discuss findings in the literature regarding long-term developmental outcomes of infants born prematurely, to examine potential causes of individual differences in these outcomes, and to explore directions for future research. An extensive table summarizes recent (1996–2002) international studies of developmental outcomes among children of school age and older who were born with low birth weight, especially as the studies relate to cognitive development and academic performance. The discussion then examines how characteristics of the child and the environment may interact to produce individual differences in outcomes. Processes of attention regulation within the context of the psychosocial environment are examined as an important possible direction for future research. When designing and implementing interventions aimed at improving outcomes in this and other groups of children at risk for delays and deficits, it is important to consider how various factors affect development.

scholarly journals Perception of Rhythmic Similarity is Asymmetrical, and Is Influenced by Musical Training, Expressive Performance, and Musical Context

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 211-227 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Cameron ◽  
Keith Potter ◽  
Geraint Wiggins ◽  
Marcus Pearce
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Musical Training ◽  
Rhythm Perception ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Musical Rhythm ◽  
Expressive Performance ◽  
Similarity Ratings ◽  
Internal Coherence ◽  
Musical Context ◽  
Exact Timing

Rhythm is an essential part of the structure, behaviour, and aesthetics of music. However, the cognitive processing that underlies the perception of musical rhythm is not fully understood. In this study, we tested whether rhythm perception is influenced by three factors: musical training, the presence of expressive performance cues in human-performed music, and the broader musical context. We compared musicians and nonmusicians’ similarity ratings for pairs of rhythms taken from Steve Reich’s Clapping Music. The rhythms were heard both in isolation and in musical context and both with and without expressive performance cues. The results revealed that rhythm perception is influenced by the experimental conditions: rhythms heard in musical context were rated as less similar than those heard in isolation; musicians’ ratings were unaffected by expressive performance, but nonmusicians rated expressively performed rhythms as less similar than those with exact timing; and expressively-performed rhythms were rated as less similar compared to rhythms with exact timing when heard in isolation but not when heard in musical context. The results also showed asymmetrical perception: the order in which two rhythms were heard influenced their perceived similarity. Analyses suggest that this asymmetry was driven by the internal coherence of rhythms, as measured by normalized Pairwise Variability Index (nPVI). As predicted, rhythms were perceived as less similar when the first rhythm in a pair had greater coherence (lower nPVI) than the second rhythm, compared to when the rhythms were heard in the opposite order.

scholarly journals Cross-Modal Priming Effect of Rhythm on Visual Word Recognition and Its Relationships to Music Aptitude and Reading Achievement

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tess S. Fotidzis ◽  
Heechun Moon ◽  
Jessica R. Steele ◽  
Cyrille L. Magne
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Reading Achievement ◽  
Word Processing ◽  
Priming Effect ◽  
Stress Pattern ◽  
Visual Word ◽  
Standardized Assessments ◽  
Musical Rhythm ◽  
Musical Aptitude ◽  
Negative Effect

Recent evidence suggests the existence of shared neural resources for rhythm processing in language and music. Such overlaps could be the basis of the facilitating effect of regular musical rhythm on spoken word processing previously reported for typical children and adults, as well as adults with Parkinson’s disease and children with developmental language disorders. The present study builds upon these previous findings by examining whether musical rhythmic priming also influences visual word processing, and the extent to which such cross-modal priming effect of rhythm is related to individual differences in musical aptitude and reading skills. EEG was recorded while participants listened to a rhythmic tone prime, followed by a visual target word with a stress pattern that either matched or mismatched the rhythmic structure of the auditory prime. Participants were also administered standardized assessments of musical aptitude and reading achievement. ERPs elicited by target words with a mismatching stress pattern showed an increased fronto-central negativity. Additionally, the size of the negative effect correlated with individual differences in musical rhythm aptitude and reading comprehension skills. Results support the existence of shared neurocognitive resources for linguistic and musical rhythm processing, and have important implications for the use of rhythm-based activities for reading interventions.

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