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Zhao C, Ong JH, Veic A, Patel AD, Jiang C, Fogel AR, Wang L, Hou Q, Das D, Crasto C, Chakrabarti B, Williams TI, Loutrari A, Liu F. Predictive processing of music and language in autism: Evidence from Mandarin and English speakers. Autism Res 2024; 17:1230-1257. [PMID: 38651566 DOI: 10.1002/aur.3133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2023] [Accepted: 04/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024]
Abstract
Atypical predictive processing has been associated with autism across multiple domains, based mainly on artificial antecedents and consequents. As structured sequences where expectations derive from implicit learning of combinatorial principles, language and music provide naturalistic stimuli for investigating predictive processing. In this study, we matched melodic and sentence stimuli in cloze probabilities and examined musical and linguistic prediction in Mandarin- (Experiment 1) and English-speaking (Experiment 2) autistic and non-autistic individuals using both production and perception tasks. In the production tasks, participants listened to unfinished melodies/sentences and then produced the final notes/words to complete these items. In the perception tasks, participants provided expectedness ratings of the completed melodies/sentences based on the most frequent notes/words in the norms. While Experiment 1 showed intact musical prediction but atypical linguistic prediction in autism in the Mandarin sample that demonstrated imbalanced musical training experience and receptive vocabulary skills between groups, the group difference disappeared in a more closely matched sample of English speakers in Experiment 2. These findings suggest the importance of taking an individual differences approach when investigating predictive processing in music and language in autism, as the difficulty in prediction in autism may not be due to generalized problems with prediction in any type of complex sequence processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chen Zhao
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Jia Hoong Ong
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Anamarija Veic
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Aniruddh D Patel
- Department of Psychology, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, USA
- Program in Brain, Mind, and Consciousness, Canadian Institute for Advanced Research (CIFAR), Toronto, Canada
| | - Cunmei Jiang
- Music College, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Allison R Fogel
- Department of Psychology, Tufts University, Medford, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Li Wang
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Qingqi Hou
- Department of Music and Dance, Nanjing Normal University of Special Education, Nanjing, China
| | - Dipsikha Das
- School of Psychology, Keele University, Staffordshire, UK
| | - Cara Crasto
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Bhismadev Chakrabarti
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Tim I Williams
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Ariadne Loutrari
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Fang Liu
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
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Dahary H, Rimmer C, Quintin EM. Musical Beat Perception Skills of Autistic and Neurotypical Children. J Autism Dev Disord 2024; 54:1453-1467. [PMID: 36635432 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-022-05864-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Many autistic children show musical interests and good musical skills including pitch and melodic memory. Autistic children may also perceive temporal regularities in music such as the primary beat underlying the rhythmic structure of music given some work showing preserved rhythm processing in the context of basic, nonverbal auditory stimuli. The temporal regularity and prediction of musical beats can potentially serve as an excellent framework for building skills in non-musical areas of growth for autistic children. We examine if autistic children are perceptually sensitive to the primary beat of music by comparing the musical beat perception skills of autistic and neurotypical children. Twenty-three autistic children and 23 neurotypical children aged 6-13 years with no group differences in chronological age and verbal and nonverbal mental ages completed a musical beat perception task where they identified whether beeps superimposed on musical excerpts were on or off the musical beat. Overall task performance was above the theoretical chance threshold of 50% but not the statistical chance threshold of 70% across groups. On-beat (versus off-beat) accuracy was higher for the autistic group but not the neurotypical group. The autistic group was just as accurate at detecting beat alignments (on-beat) but less precise at detecting beat misalignments (off-beat) compared to the neurotypical group. Perceptual sensitivity to beat alignments provides support for spared music processing among autistic children and informs on the accessibility of using musical beats and rhythm for cultivating related skills and behaviours (e.g., language and motor abilities).
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Affiliation(s)
- Hadas Dahary
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Centre for Research on Brain, Language and Music, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Azrieli Centre for Autism Research, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Charlotte Rimmer
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Centre for Research on Brain, Language and Music, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Eve-Marie Quintin
- Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
- Centre for Research on Brain, Language and Music, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
- Azrieli Centre for Autism Research, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
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3
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Day TC, Malik I, Boateng S, Hauschild KM, Lerner MD. Vocal Emotion Recognition in Autism: Behavioral Performance and Event-Related Potential (ERP) Response. J Autism Dev Disord 2024; 54:1235-1248. [PMID: 36694007 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-023-05898-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Autistic youth display difficulties in emotion recognition, yet little research has examined behavioral and neural indices of vocal emotion recognition (VER). The current study examines behavioral and event-related potential (N100, P200, Late Positive Potential [LPP]) indices of VER in autistic and non-autistic youth. Participants (N = 164) completed an emotion recognition task, the Diagnostic Analyses of Nonverbal Accuracy (DANVA-2) which included VER, during EEG recording. The LPP amplitude was larger in response to high intensity VER, and social cognition predicted VER errors. Verbal IQ, not autism, was related to VER errors. An interaction between VER intensity and social communication impairments revealed these impairments were related to larger LPP amplitudes during low intensity VER. Taken together, differences in VER may be due to higher order cognitive processes, not basic, early perception (N100, P200), and verbal cognitive abilities may underlie behavioral, yet occlude neural, differences in VER processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Talena C Day
- Psychology Department, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, Psychology B-354, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-2500, USA
| | - Isha Malik
- Psychology Department, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, Psychology B-354, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-2500, USA
| | - Sydney Boateng
- Psychology Department, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, Psychology B-354, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-2500, USA
| | | | - Matthew D Lerner
- Psychology Department, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, Psychology B-354, Stony Brook, NY, 11794-2500, USA.
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4
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Williams TI, Loucas T, Sin J, Jeremic M, Meyer S, Boseley S, Fincham-Majumdar S, Aslett G, Renshaw R, Liu F. Using music to assist language learning in autistic children with minimal verbal language: The MAP feasibility RCT. AUTISM : THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND PRACTICE 2024:13623613241233804. [PMID: 38433533 DOI: 10.1177/13623613241233804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
LAY ABSTRACT Research has shown that autistic individuals often have unusually good musical skills and that combining words and music helps autistic individuals to focus on spoken words. This study tests the idea that music will help with early language learning of preschool autistic children. The results show that when caregivers sing words to autistic children, the children pay more attention to the caregiver than when the words are spoken and that they learn word combinations more easily.
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Shang P, Li Y, Liang Y. Unraveling the contributions of prosodic patterns and individual traits on cross-linguistic perception of Spanish sentence modality. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0298708. [PMID: 38422071 PMCID: PMC10903904 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0298708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 03/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Cross-linguistic perception is known to be molded by native and second language (L2) experiences. Yet, the role of prosodic patterns and individual characteristics on how speakers of tonal languages perceive L2 Spanish sentence modalities remains relatively underexplored. This study addresses the gap by analyzing the auditory performance of 75 Mandarin speakers with varying levels of Spanish proficiency. The experiment consisted of four parts: the first three collected sociolinguistic profiles and assessed participants' pragmatic competence and musical abilities. The last part involved an auditory gating task, where participants were asked to identify Spanish broad focus statements and information-seeking yes/no questions with different stress patterns. Results indicated that the shape of intonation contours and the position of the final stressed syllable significantly impact learners' perceptual accuracy, with effects modulated by utterance length and L2 proficiency. Moreover, individual differences in pragmatic and musical competence were found to refine auditory and cognitive processing in Mandarin learners, thereby influencing their ability to discriminate question-statement contrasts. These findings reveal the complex interplay between prosodic and individual variations in L2 speech perception, providing novel insights into how speakers of tonal languages process intonation in a non-native Romance language like Spanish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peizhu Shang
- School of Foreign Languages, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Yuejiao Li
- School of Foreign Studies, Hefei University of Technology, Anhui, China
| | - Yuhao Liang
- College of International Education, Guizhou University, Guiyang, China
- School of International Chinese Language Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
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Lai B, Yi A, Zhang F, Wang S, Xin J, Li S, Yu L. Atypical brain lateralization for speech processing at the sublexical level in autistic children revealed by fNIRS. Sci Rep 2024; 14:2776. [PMID: 38307983 PMCID: PMC10837203 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-53128-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Autistic children often exhibit atypical brain lateralization of language processing, but it is unclear what aspects of language contribute to this phenomenon. This study employed functional near-infrared spectroscopy to measure hemispheric lateralization by estimating hemodynamic responses associated with processing linguistic and non-linguistic auditory stimuli. The study involved a group of autistic children (N = 20, mean age = 5.8 years) and a comparison group of nonautistic peers (N = 20, mean age = 6.5 years). The children were presented with stimuli with systematically decreasing linguistic relevance: naturalistic native speech, meaningless native speech with scrambled word order, nonnative speech, and music. The results revealed that both groups showed left lateralization in the temporal lobe when listening to naturalistic native speech. However, the distinction emerged between autism and nonautistic in terms of processing the linguistic hierarchy. Specifically, the nonautistic comparison group demonstrated a systematic reduction in left lateralization as linguistic relevance decreased. In contrast, the autism group displayed no such pattern and showed no lateralization when listening to scrambled native speech accompanied by enhanced response in the right hemisphere. These results provide evidence of atypical neural specialization for spoken language in preschool- and school-age autistic children and shed new light on the underlying linguistic correlates contributing to such atypicality at the sublexical level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baojun Lai
- Center for Autism Research, School of Education, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- Tiyudong Road Primary School (Xingguo), Guangzhou, China
| | - Aiwen Yi
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Department of Pediatrics; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Major 0bstetric Diseases; Guangdong Provincial Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology; Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Higher Education Laboratory of Maternal-Fetal Joint Medicine, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Fen Zhang
- VITO Health, Flemish Institute for Technological Research, Mol, Belgium
| | - Suiping Wang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jing Xin
- Foshan Clinical Medical School, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Foshan, China
| | - Suping Li
- Foshan Clinical Medical School, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Foshan, China
| | - Luodi Yu
- Center for Autism Research, School of Education, Guangzhou University, Guangzhou, China.
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.
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Yu L, Huang D, Wang S, Zhang Y. Reduced Neural Specialization for Word-level Linguistic Prosody in Children with Autism. J Autism Dev Disord 2023; 53:4351-4367. [PMID: 36038793 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-022-05720-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/10/2022] [Indexed: 10/15/2022]
Abstract
Children with autism often show atypical brain lateralization for speech and language processing, however, it is unclear what linguistic component contributes to this phenomenon. Here we measured event-related potential (ERP) responses in 21 school-age autistic children and 25 age-matched neurotypical (NT) peers during listening to word-level prosodic stimuli. We found that both groups displayed larger late negative response (LNR) amplitude to native prosody than to nonnative prosody; however, unlike the NT group exhibiting left-lateralized LNR distinction of prosodic phonology, the autism group showed no evidence of LNR lateralization. Moreover, in both groups, the LNR effects were only present for prosodic phonology but not for phoneme-free prosodic acoustics. These results extended the findings of inadequate neural specialization for language in autism to sub-lexical prosodic structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luodi Yu
- Center for Autism Research, School of Education, Guangzhou University, Wenyi Bldg, Guangzhou, China.
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University) , Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.
| | - Dan Huang
- Guangzhou Rehabilitation & Research Center for Children with ASD, Guangzhou Cana School, Guangzhou, China
| | - Suiping Wang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University) , Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.
| | - Yang Zhang
- Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
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Ong JH, Zhao C, Bacon A, Leung FYN, Veic A, Wang L, Jiang C, Liu F. The Relationship Between Autism and Pitch Perception is Modulated by Cognitive Abilities. J Autism Dev Disord 2023:10.1007/s10803-023-06075-7. [PMID: 37642868 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-023-06075-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/20/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023]
Abstract
Previous studies reported mixed findings on autistic individuals' pitch perception relative to neurotypical (NT) individuals. We investigated whether this may be partly due to individual differences in cognitive abilities by comparing their performance on various pitch perception tasks on a large sample (n = 164) of autistic and NT children and adults. Our findings revealed that: (i) autistic individuals either showed similar or worse performance than NT individuals on the pitch tasks; (ii) cognitive abilities were associated with some pitch task performance; and (iii) cognitive abilities modulated the relationship between autism diagnosis and pitch perception on some tasks. Our findings highlight the importance of taking an individual differences approach to understand the strengths and weaknesses of pitch processing in autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jia Hoong Ong
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
- Department of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
| | - Chen Zhao
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Alex Bacon
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | | | - Anamarija Veic
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Li Wang
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Cunmei Jiang
- Music College, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Fang Liu
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK.
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Lee JH, Hwang H, Yun J, Kim HJ, Yoo SK, Chung US, Han DH. Developing an Attention Assessment Tool for Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder Using Timbre, Rhythm, and Pitch. J Korean Med Sci 2023; 38:e228. [PMID: 37489717 PMCID: PMC10366410 DOI: 10.3346/jkms.2023.38.e228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 03/28/2023] [Indexed: 07/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Music is regarded as a beneficial tool for assessing the clinical symptoms and communication skills in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism. The present study developed a music-based attention test (MAT) for individuals with autism using music parameters and the algorithm of the comprehensive attention test (CAT). METHODS We recruited 51 autistic individuals and 50 neurotypical individuals to participate in the CAT, MAT, and social intelligence tests. The reliability and validity of the MAT were assessed using exploratory factor analysis, concurrent validity, and criterion-related validity. RESULTS The MAT had sound internal consistency (high Cronbach's α = 0.948). In addition, the MAT had suitable concurrent validity in the correlation between CAT and MAT, as well as good criterion validity when attention was measured using the MAT and was compared between autistic individuals and neurotypical individuals. Attention evaluated using the MAT was associated with the social quotient in individuals with autism. CONCLUSIONS The MAT could be a relevant tool for gauging attention in individuals with ASD. Furthermore, attention determined using the MAT may be correlated with social quotient in autistic individuals. Future studies should consider that using music in the field of attention could improve the social quotient of individuals with autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin Hyung Lee
- Department of Psychiatry, Chung-Ang University Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Hyunchan Hwang
- Department of Psychiatry, Chung-Ang University Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Juri Yun
- Department of Music Therapy, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Hee Jun Kim
- Department of Oncology, Chung-Ang University Hospital, Seoul, Korea
| | - Seo-Koo Yoo
- School of Social Welfare, Soongsil University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Un Sun Chung
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, Korea
| | - Doug Hyun Han
- Department of Psychiatry, Chung-Ang University Hospital, Seoul, Korea.
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Gonçalves AM, Monteiro P. Autism Spectrum Disorder and auditory sensory alterations: a systematic review on the integrity of cognitive and neuronal functions related to auditory processing. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2023; 130:325-408. [PMID: 36914900 PMCID: PMC10033482 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-023-02595-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 01/17/2023] [Indexed: 03/15/2023]
Abstract
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental condition with a wide spectrum of symptoms, mainly characterized by social, communication, and cognitive impairments. Latest diagnostic criteria according to DSM-5 (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition, 2013) now include sensory issues among the four restricted/repetitive behavior features defined as "hyper- or hypo-reactivity to sensory input or unusual interest in sensory aspects of environment". Here, we review auditory sensory alterations in patients with ASD. Considering the updated diagnostic criteria for ASD, we examined research evidence (2015-2022) of the integrity of the cognitive function in auditory-related tasks, the integrity of the peripheral auditory system, and the integrity of the central nervous system in patients diagnosed with ASD. Taking into account the different approaches and experimental study designs, we reappraise the knowledge on auditory sensory alterations and reflect on how these might be linked with behavior symptomatology in ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Margarida Gonçalves
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute, School of Medicine, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, 4710-057, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal
| | - Patricia Monteiro
- Life and Health Sciences Research Institute, School of Medicine, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4710-057, Braga, Portugal.
- ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, 4710-057, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal.
- Experimental Biology Unit, Department of Biomedicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal.
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11
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Singing ability is related to vocal emotion recognition: Evidence for shared sensorimotor processing across speech and music. Atten Percept Psychophys 2023; 85:234-243. [PMID: 36380148 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-022-02613-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The ability to recognize emotion in speech is a critical skill for social communication. Motivated by previous work that has shown that vocal emotion recognition accuracy varies by musical ability, the current study addressed this relationship using a behavioral measure of musical ability (i.e., singing) that relies on the same effector system used for vocal prosody production. In the current study, participants completed a musical production task that involved singing four-note novel melodies. To measure pitch perception, we used a simple pitch discrimination task in which participants indicated whether a target pitch was higher or lower than a comparison pitch. We also used self-report measures to address language and musical background. We report that singing ability, but not self-reported musical experience nor pitch discrimination ability, was a unique predictor of vocal emotion recognition accuracy. These results support a relationship between processes involved in vocal production and vocal perception, and suggest that sensorimotor processing of the vocal system is recruited for processing vocal prosody.
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12
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Chen Y, Tang E, Ding H, Zhang Y. Auditory Pitch Perception in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2022; 65:4866-4886. [PMID: 36450443 DOI: 10.1044/2022_jslhr-22-00254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Pitch plays an important role in auditory perception of music and language. This study provides a systematic review with meta-analysis to investigate whether individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have enhanced pitch processing ability and to identify the potential factors associated with processing differences between ASD and neurotypicals. METHOD We conducted a systematic search through six major electronic databases focusing on the studies that used nonspeech stimuli to provide a qualitative and quantitative assessment across existing studies on pitch perception in autism. We identified potential participant- and methodology-related moderators and conducted metaregression analyses using mixed-effects models. RESULTS On the basis of 22 studies with a total of 464 participants with ASD, we obtained a small-to-medium positive effect size (g = 0.26) in support of enhanced pitch perception in ASD. Moreover, the mean age and nonverbal IQ of participants were found to significantly moderate the between-studies heterogeneity. CONCLUSIONS Our study provides the first meta-analysis on auditory pitch perception in ASD and demonstrates the existence of different developmental trajectories between autistic individuals and neurotypicals. In addition to age, nonverbal ability is found to be a significant contributor to the lower level/local processing bias in ASD. We highlight the need for further investigation of pitch perception in ASD under challenging listening conditions. Future neurophysiological and brain imaging studies with a longitudinal design are also needed to better understand the underlying neural mechanisms of atypical pitch processing in ASD and to help guide auditory-based interventions for improving language and social functioning. SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.21614271.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Chen
- Speech-Language-Hearing Center, School of Foreign Languages, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China
| | - Enze Tang
- Speech-Language-Hearing Center, School of Foreign Languages, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China
| | - Hongwei Ding
- Speech-Language-Hearing Center, School of Foreign Languages, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China
| | - Yang Zhang
- Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences and Masonic Institute for the Developing Brain, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
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Rong Y, Weng Y, Chen F, Peng G. Categorical perception of Mandarin lexical tones in language-delayed autistic children. AUTISM : THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND PRACTICE 2022:13623613221138687. [DOI: 10.1177/13623613221138687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Enhanced pitch perception has been identified in autistic individuals, but it remains understudied whether such enhancement can be observed in the lexical tone perception of language-delayed autistic children. This study examined the categorical perception of Mandarin lexical tones in 23 language-delayed autistic children and two groups of non-autistic children, with one matched on chronological age ( n = 23) and the other on developmental age in language ability ( n = 23). The participants were required to identify and discriminate lexical tones. A wider identification boundary width and a lower between-category discrimination accuracy were found in autistic children than their chronological-age-matched non-autistic peers, but the autistic group exhibited seemingly comparable performance to the group of developmental-age-matched non-autistic children. While both non-autistic groups displayed a typical categorical perception pattern with enhanced sensitivity to between-category tone pairs relative to within-category ones, such a categorical perception pattern was not observed in the autistic group. These findings suggest among language-delayed autistic children with a developmental age around 4, categorical perception is still developing. Finally, we found categorical perception performance correlated with language ability, indicating autistic children’s language disability might be predictive of their poor categorical perception of speech sounds. Lay abstract Some theories suggested that autistic people have better pitch perception skills than non-autistic people. However, in a context where pitch patterns are used to differentiate word meanings (i.e. lexical tones), autistic people may encounter difficulties, especially those with less language experience. We tested this by asking language-delayed autistic children to identify and discriminate two Mandarin lexical tones (/yi/ with Tone 1, meaning ‘clothes’; /yi/ with Tone 2, meaning ‘aunt’; /yi/: the standard romanization of Mandarin Chinese). On average, these autistic children were 7.35 years old, but their developmental age in language ability was 4.20, lagging behind 7-year-old non-autistic children in terms of language ability. Autistic children’s performance in identifying and discriminating lexical tones was compared with two groups of non-autistic children: one group was matched with the autistic group on age, and the other was matched based on language ability. Autistic children performed differently from the non-autistic children matched on age, while autistic and non-autistic children matched on language ability exhibited seemingly similar performance. However, both the non-autistic groups have developed the perceptual ability to process lexical tones as different categories, but this ability was still developing in autistic children. Finally, we found autistic children who performed worse in identifying lexical tones had poorer language ability. The results suggest that language disability might have adverse influence on the development of skills of speech sound processing.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yi Weng
- The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China
| | | | - Gang Peng
- The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China
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14
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Gottfried T, Elefant C, Gold C. Music-oriented parent counseling to promote improvement in level of parental stress, quality of life and the use of music in everyday life among parents of children with autism: A mixed-methods randomized controlled study. NORDIC JOURNAL OF MUSIC THERAPY 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/08098131.2022.2131890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tali Gottfried
- Graduate Program for Special Education, Herzog College, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Cochavit Elefant
- School for Creative Arts Therapies, Emili Sagol Creative Arts Therapies Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | - Christian Gold
- GAMUT – The Grieg Academy Music Therapy Research Centre, NORCE Norwegian Research Centre AS, Bergen, Norway
- Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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15
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Wang L, Ong JH, Ponsot E, Hou Q, Jiang C, Liu F. Mental representations of speech and musical pitch contours reveal a diversity of profiles in autism spectrum disorder. AUTISM : THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF RESEARCH AND PRACTICE 2022; 27:629-646. [PMID: 35848413 PMCID: PMC10074762 DOI: 10.1177/13623613221111207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
LAY ABSTRACT As a key auditory attribute of sounds, pitch is ubiquitous in our everyday listening experience involving language, music and environmental sounds. Given its critical role in auditory processing related to communication, numerous studies have investigated pitch processing in autism spectrum disorder. However, the findings have been mixed, reporting either enhanced, typical or impaired performance among autistic individuals. By investigating top-down comparisons of internal mental representations of pitch contours in speech and music, this study shows for the first time that, while autistic individuals exhibit diverse profiles of pitch processing compared to non-autistic individuals, their mental representations of pitch contours are typical across domains. These findings suggest that pitch-processing mechanisms are shared across domains in autism spectrum disorder and provide theoretical implications for using music to improve speech for those autistic individuals who have language problems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Wang
- University of Reading, UK.,The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | | | | | - Qingqi Hou
- Nanjing Normal University of Special Education, China
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16
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Schelinski S, Tabas A, von Kriegstein K. Altered processing of communication signals in the subcortical auditory sensory pathway in autism. Hum Brain Mapp 2022; 43:1955-1972. [PMID: 35037743 PMCID: PMC8933247 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25766] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Revised: 11/24/2021] [Accepted: 12/19/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterised by social communication difficulties. These difficulties have been mainly explained by cognitive, motivational, and emotional alterations in ASD. The communication difficulties could, however, also be associated with altered sensory processing of communication signals. Here, we assessed the functional integrity of auditory sensory pathway nuclei in ASD in three independent functional magnetic resonance imaging experiments. We focused on two aspects of auditory communication that are impaired in ASD: voice identity perception, and recognising speech‐in‐noise. We found reduced processing in adults with ASD as compared to typically developed control groups (pairwise matched on sex, age, and full‐scale IQ) in the central midbrain structure of the auditory pathway (inferior colliculus [IC]). The right IC responded less in the ASD as compared to the control group for voice identity, in contrast to speech recognition. The right IC also responded less in the ASD as compared to the control group when passively listening to vocal in contrast to non‐vocal sounds. Within the control group, the left and right IC responded more when recognising speech‐in‐noise as compared to when recognising speech without additional noise. In the ASD group, this was only the case in the left, but not the right IC. The results show that communication signal processing in ASD is associated with reduced subcortical sensory functioning in the midbrain. The results highlight the importance of considering sensory processing alterations in explaining communication difficulties, which are at the core of ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie Schelinski
- Faculty of Psychology, Chair of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.,Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Alejandro Tabas
- Faculty of Psychology, Chair of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.,Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Katharina von Kriegstein
- Faculty of Psychology, Chair of Cognitive and Clinical Neuroscience, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.,Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
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17
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Hernandez-Ruiz E, Qi R, Welsh E, Wampler M, Bradshaw L. Psychological and Neural Differences of Music Processing in Autistic Individuals: A Scoping Review. J Music Ther 2022; 59:87-124. [PMID: 34984456 DOI: 10.1093/jmt/thab020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Despite abundant research and clinical evidence of the effectiveness of music interventions for people in the autism spectrum, understanding of music processing in this community is limited. We explored whether research evidence of differences in music processing within the autistic community is available. We developed a scoping review to search for literature with the terms "music", "processing," and "autism" (and variants). We searched PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycInfo, Academic Search Complete, ERIC, and Music Index databases for a total of 10,857 articles, with 5,236 duplicates. The remaining 5,621 titles and abstracts were screened for eligibility by a team of four undergraduate and graduate students and the PI. Seventy-five studies were included for data extraction. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics regarding author, study, stimulus, and participant information, and a thematic analysis of outcome and findings. Our findings are preliminary given the emerging nature of the literature, the use of mostly non-musical auditory stimuli, passive listening experiences, and underreported demographics. However, the literature shows some evidence of differences in music processing for autistic individuals, including reduced habituation to non-musical and musical stimuli; truncated, delayed, or divergent developmental trajectories; and possible compensatory higher-order mechanisms that yield similar behavioral responses even in the presence of divergent neural correlates. Music therapists are encouraged to adopt a developmental perspective, not only of general skills, but specifically of music skill development in this community, and to extrapolate these findings with caution, given the current limitations in the evidence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eugenia Hernandez-Ruiz
- Music Therapy, School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Ruowen Qi
- Music Therapy, School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA.,Department of Music, Nanjing Normal University of Special Education, Urumqi, Xinjiang, China
| | - Emily Welsh
- Music Therapy, School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Madelyn Wampler
- Music Therapy, School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
| | - Liesel Bradshaw
- Music Therapy, School of Music, Dance and Theatre, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, USA
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18
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Xu J, Zhou L, Liu F, Xue C, Jiang J, Jiang C. The autistic brain can process local but not global emotion regularities in facial and musical sequences. Autism Res 2021; 15:222-240. [PMID: 34792299 DOI: 10.1002/aur.2635] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2021] [Revised: 10/31/2021] [Accepted: 11/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
Whether autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with a global processing deficit remains controversial. Global integration requires extraction of regularity across various timescales, yet little is known about how individuals with ASD process regularity at local (short timescale) versus global (long timescale) levels. To this end, we used event-related potentials to investigate whether individuals with ASD would show different neural responses to local (within trial) versus global (across trials) emotion regularities extracted from sequential facial expressions; and if so, whether this visual abnormality would generalize to the music (auditory) domain. Twenty individuals with ASD and 21 age- and IQ-matched individuals with typical development participated in this study. At an early processing stage, ASD participants exhibited preserved neural responses to violations of local emotion regularity for both faces and music. At a later stage, however, there was an absence of neural responses in ASD to violations of global emotion regularity for both faces and music. These findings suggest that the autistic brain responses to emotion regularity are modulated by the timescale of sequential stimuli, and provide insight into the neural mechanisms underlying emotional processing in ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Xu
- Department of Psychology, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Linshu Zhou
- Music College, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Fang Liu
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Chao Xue
- Department of Psychology, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jun Jiang
- Music College, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Cunmei Jiang
- Music College, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
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19
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Chen F, Peng G. Categorical Perception of Pitch Contours and Voice Onset Time in Mandarin-Speaking Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorders. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2021; 64:4468-4484. [PMID: 34570628 DOI: 10.1044/2021_jslhr-20-00725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Purpose Previous studies have shown enhanced pitch and impaired time perception in individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). However, it remains unclear whether such deviated patterns of auditory processing depending on acoustic dimensions would transfer to the higher level linguistic pitch and time processing. In this study, we compared the categorical perception (CP) of lexical tones and voice onset time (VOT) in Mandarin Chinese, which utilize pitch and time changes, respectively, to convey phonemic contrasts. Method The data were collected from 22 Mandarin-speaking adolescents with ASD and 20 age-matched neurotypical controls. In addition to the identification and discrimination tasks to test CP performance, all the participants were evaluated with their language ability and phonological working memory. Linear mixed-effects models were constructed to evaluate the identification and discrimination scores across different groups and conditions. Results The basic CP pattern of cross-boundary benefit when perceiving both native lexical tones and VOT was largely preserved in high-functioning adolescents with ASD. The degree of CP of lexical tones in ASD was similar to that in typical controls, whereas the degree of CP of VOT in ASD was greatly reduced. Furthermore, the degree of CP of lexical tones correlated with language ability and digit span in ASD participants. Conclusions These findings suggest that the unbalanced acoustic processing capacities for pitch and time can be generalized to the higher level linguistic processing in ASD. Furthermore, the higher degree of CP of lexical tones correlated with better language ability in Mandarin-speaking individuals with ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Chen
- School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University, Changsha, China
| | - Gang Peng
- Research Centre for Language, Cognition, and Neuroscience, Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China
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20
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Williams TI, Loucas T, Sin J, Jeremic M, Aslett G, Knight M, Fincham-Majumdar S, Liu F. A randomised controlled feasibility trial of music-assisted language telehealth intervention for minimally verbal autistic children-the MAP study protocol. Pilot Feasibility Stud 2021; 7:182. [PMID: 34598714 PMCID: PMC8485102 DOI: 10.1186/s40814-021-00918-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2021] [Accepted: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND About 30% of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) do not develop functional speech and remain non-verbal or minimally verbal even after years of speech, language and educational interventions. A wide range of interventions have been developed for improving communication in ASD, but none have proved effective in eliciting functional language in ASD children. Research has found that people with ASD are more likely to have perfect pitch and prefer music to language. Further, it seems that language delay tends to co-occur with better musical skills. Brain imaging research has found that music alongside words increases the attention that people with ASD pay to spoken words. METHODS In this protocol, we describe our music-assisted programmes (MAP) that will use music to attract the attention of people with ASD to speech. MAP may open the brain pathways to language and therefore help improve communication skills for people with ASD more than standard communication protocols. In particular, we aim to develop and test whether individualised, easily used MAP would increase spoken language in 24-60-month-old, nonverbal or minimally verbal children with ASD. We will develop a structured training method, delivered through naturalistic, interactive activities (e.g. songs) to teach language to ASD children. We will test this by comparing two groups: one undertaking music-assisted programmes, and the other receiving speech and language therapy in the way that is recommended in NHS clinics. Participants will be allocated to groups randomly. The feasibility of MAP will be assessed through estimations of recruitment and retention rates, the sensitivity and reliability of the outcome measures, the intensity and frequency of the trial, the usability of the MAP app (beta version), and the burden of the assessments for the children and parents. DISCUSSION This feasibility randomised controlled trial will establish the acceptability and estimate the power of the MAP intervention to improve early word learning in children with ASD. In the longer term, this research will help us develop an app for parents or carers of children with ASD to design their own songs and implement their own individualised MAP. TRIAL REGISTRATION ISRCTN, ISRCTN12536062 . Registered on 26 June 2019.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim I Williams
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Tom Loucas
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Jacqueline Sin
- School of Health Sciences, City University of London, London, UK
| | - Mirjana Jeremic
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Georgia Aslett
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | | | - Sara Fincham-Majumdar
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Fang Liu
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK.
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21
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Wang L, Beaman CP, Jiang C, Liu F. Perception and Production of Statement-Question Intonation in Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Developmental Investigation. J Autism Dev Disord 2021; 52:3456-3472. [PMID: 34355295 PMCID: PMC9296411 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-021-05220-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Prosody or “melody in speech” in autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is often perceived as atypical. This study examined perception and production of statements and questions in 84 children, adolescents and adults with and without ASD, as well as participants’ pitch direction discrimination thresholds. The results suggested that the abilities to discriminate (in both speech and music conditions), identify, and imitate statement-question intonation were intact in individuals with ASD across age cohorts. Sensitivity to pitch direction predicted performance on intonation processing in both groups, who also exhibited similar developmental changes. These findings provide evidence for shared mechanisms in pitch processing between speech and music, as well as associations between low- and high-level pitch processing and between perception and production of pitch.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Wang
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - C Philip Beaman
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Cunmei Jiang
- Music College, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Fang Liu
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK.
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22
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Yu L, Huang D, Wang S, Wu X, Chen Y, Zhang Y. Evidence of Altered Cortical Processing of Dynamic Lexical Tone Pitch Contour in Chinese Children with Autism. Neurosci Bull 2021; 37:1605-1608. [PMID: 34279794 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-021-00752-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 05/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Luodi Yu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China. .,South China Normal University Autism Research Center, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
| | - Dan Huang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.,Guangzhou Rehabilitation and Research Center for Children with Autism, Guangzhou Cana School, Guangzhou, 510540, China
| | - Suiping Wang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China. .,South China Normal University Autism Research Center, Guangzhou, 510631, China.
| | - Xueyuan Wu
- Guangzhou Rehabilitation and Research Center for Children with Autism, Guangzhou Cana School, Guangzhou, 510540, China
| | - Yang Chen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, China; School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.,South China Normal University Autism Research Center, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Yang Zhang
- Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, 55455, USA
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23
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Wang L, Pfordresher PQ, Jiang C, Liu F. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder are impaired in absolute but not relative pitch and duration matching in speech and song imitation. Autism Res 2021; 14:2355-2372. [PMID: 34214243 DOI: 10.1002/aur.2569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2020] [Revised: 05/03/2021] [Accepted: 06/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit atypical imitation. However, few studies have identified clear quantitative characteristics of vocal imitation in ASD. This study investigated imitation of speech and song in English-speaking individuals with and without ASD and its modulation by age. Participants consisted of 25 autistic children and 19 autistic adults, who were compared to 25 children and 19 adults with typical development matched on age, gender, musical training, and cognitive abilities. The task required participants to imitate speech and song stimuli with varying pitch and duration patterns. Acoustic analyses of the imitation performance suggested that individuals with ASD were worse than controls on absolute pitch and duration matching for both speech and song imitation, although they performed as well as controls on relative pitch and duration matching. Furthermore, the two groups produced similar numbers of pitch contour, pitch interval-, and time errors. Across both groups, sung pitch was imitated more accurately than spoken pitch, whereas spoken duration was imitated more accurately than sung duration. Children imitated spoken pitch more accurately than adults when it came to speech stimuli, whereas age showed no significant relationship to song imitation. These results reveal a vocal imitation deficit across speech and music domains in ASD that is specific to absolute pitch and duration matching. This finding provides evidence for shared mechanisms between speech and song imitation, which involves independent implementation of relative versus absolute features. LAY SUMMARY: Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit atypical imitation of actions and gestures. Characteristics of vocal imitation in ASD remain unclear. By comparing speech and song imitation, this study shows that individuals with ASD have a vocal imitative deficit that is specific to absolute pitch and duration matching, while performing as well as controls on relative pitch and duration matching, across speech and music domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Wang
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
| | - Peter Q Pfordresher
- Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, New York, USA
| | - Cunmei Jiang
- Music College, Shanghai Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Fang Liu
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK
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24
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Chen F, Cheung CCH, Peng G. Linguistic Tone and Non-Linguistic Pitch Imitation in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: A Cross-Linguistic Investigation. J Autism Dev Disord 2021; 52:2325-2343. [PMID: 34109462 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-021-05123-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The conclusions on prosodic pitch features in autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have primarily been derived from studies in non-tonal language speakers. This cross-linguistic study evaluated the performance of imitating Cantonese lexical tones and their non-linguistic (nonspeech) counterparts by Cantonese- and Mandarin-speaking children with and without ASD. Acoustic analyses showed that, compared with typically developing peers, children with ASD exhibited increased pitch variations when imitating lexical tones, while performed similarly when imitating the nonspeech counterparts. Furthermore, Mandarin-speaking children with ASD failed to exploit the phonological knowledge of segments to improve the imitation accuracy of non-native lexical tones. These findings help clarify the speech-specific pitch processing atypicality and phonological processing deficit in tone-language-speaking children with ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Chen
- School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University, Changsha, China.
| | - Candice Chi-Hang Cheung
- Research Centre for Language, Cognition, and Neuroscience, & Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Gang Peng
- Research Centre for Language, Cognition, and Neuroscience, & Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR, China.
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25
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Chen F, Zhang H, Ding H, Wang S, Peng G, Zhang Y. Neural coding of formant-exaggerated speech and nonspeech in children with and without autism spectrum disorders. Autism Res 2021; 14:1357-1374. [PMID: 33792205 DOI: 10.1002/aur.2509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2020] [Revised: 03/09/2021] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The presence of vowel exaggeration in infant-directed speech (IDS) may adapt to the age-appropriate demands in speech and language acquisition. Previous studies have provided behavioral evidence of atypical auditory processing towards IDS in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), while the underlying neurophysiological mechanisms remain unknown. This event-related potential (ERP) study investigated the neural coding of formant-exaggerated speech and nonspeech in 24 4- to 11-year-old children with ASD and 24 typically-developing (TD) peers. The EEG data were recorded using an alternating block design, in which each stimulus type (exaggerated/non-exaggerated sound) was presented with equal probability. ERP waveform analysis revealed an enhanced P1 for vowel formant exaggeration in the TD group but not in the ASD group. This speech-specific atypical processing in ASD was not found for the nonspeech stimuli which showed similar P1 enhancement in both ASD and TD groups. Moreover, the time-frequency analysis indicated that children with ASD showed differences in neural synchronization in the delta-theta bands for processing acoustic formant changes embedded in nonspeech. Collectively, the results add substantiating neurophysiological evidence (i.e., a lack of neural enhancement effect of vowel exaggeration) for atypical auditory processing of IDS in children with ASD, which may exert a negative effect on phonetic encoding and language learning. LAY SUMMARY: Atypical responses to motherese might act as a potential early marker of risk for children with ASD. This study investigated the neural responses to such socially relevant stimuli in the ASD brain, and the results suggested a lack of neural enhancement responding to the motherese even in individuals without intellectual disability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fei Chen
- School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University, Changsha, China.,Research Centre for Language, Cognition, and Neuroscience & Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR, China.,Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences & Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minnesota, USA
| | - Hao Zhang
- Speech-Language-Hearing Center, School of Foreign Languages, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Hongwei Ding
- Speech-Language-Hearing Center, School of Foreign Languages, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Suiping Wang
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Gang Peng
- Research Centre for Language, Cognition, and Neuroscience & Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Yang Zhang
- Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences & Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Minnesota, USA
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26
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Aberrant auditory system and its developmental implications for autism. SCIENCE CHINA-LIFE SCIENCES 2021; 64:861-878. [DOI: 10.1007/s11427-020-1863-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2020] [Accepted: 12/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
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27
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Stroganova TA, Komarov KS, Sysoeva OV, Goiaeva DE, Obukhova TS, Ovsiannikova TM, Prokofyev AO, Orekhova EV. Left hemispheric deficit in the sustained neuromagnetic response to periodic click trains in children with ASD. Mol Autism 2020; 11:100. [PMID: 33384021 PMCID: PMC7775632 DOI: 10.1186/s13229-020-00408-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 12/17/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Deficits in perception and production of vocal pitch are often observed in people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but the neural basis of these deficits is unknown. In magnetoencephalogram (MEG), spectrally complex periodic sounds trigger two continuous neural responses-the auditory steady state response (ASSR) and the sustained field (SF). It has been shown that the SF in neurotypical individuals is associated with low-level analysis of pitch in the 'pitch processing center' of the Heschl's gyrus. Therefore, alternations in this auditory response may reflect atypical processing of vocal pitch. The SF, however, has never been studied in people with ASD. METHODS We used MEG and individual brain models to investigate the ASSR and SF evoked by monaural 40 Hz click trains in boys with ASD (N = 35) and neurotypical (NT) boys (N = 35) aged 7-12-years. RESULTS In agreement with the previous research in adults, the cortical sources of the SF in children were located in the left and right Heschl's gyri, anterolateral to those of the ASSR. In both groups, the SF and ASSR dominated in the right hemisphere and were higher in the hemisphere contralateral to the stimulated ear. The ASSR increased with age in both NT and ASD children and did not differ between the groups. The SF amplitude did not significantly change between the ages of 7 and 12 years. It was moderately attenuated in both hemispheres and was markedly delayed and displaced in the left hemisphere in boys with ASD. The SF delay in participants with ASD was present irrespective of their intelligence level and severity of autism symptoms. LIMITATIONS We did not test the language abilities of our participants. Therefore, the link between SF and processing of vocal pitch in children with ASD remains speculative. CONCLUSION Children with ASD demonstrate atypical processing of spectrally complex periodic sound at the level of the core auditory cortex of the left-hemisphere. The observed neural deficit may contribute to speech perception difficulties experienced by children with ASD, including their poor perception and production of linguistic prosody.
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Affiliation(s)
- T A Stroganova
- Center for Neurocognitive Research (MEG Center), Moscow State University of Psychology and Education, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - K S Komarov
- Center for Neurocognitive Research (MEG Center), Moscow State University of Psychology and Education, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - O V Sysoeva
- Institute of Higher Nervous Activity, Russian Academy of Science, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - D E Goiaeva
- Center for Neurocognitive Research (MEG Center), Moscow State University of Psychology and Education, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - T S Obukhova
- Center for Neurocognitive Research (MEG Center), Moscow State University of Psychology and Education, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - T M Ovsiannikova
- Center for Neurocognitive Research (MEG Center), Moscow State University of Psychology and Education, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - A O Prokofyev
- Center for Neurocognitive Research (MEG Center), Moscow State University of Psychology and Education, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - E V Orekhova
- Center for Neurocognitive Research (MEG Center), Moscow State University of Psychology and Education, Moscow, Russian Federation. .,MedTech West and the Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, Sahlgrenska Academy, The University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden.
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Borowiak K, von Kriegstein K. Intranasal oxytocin modulates brain responses to voice-identity recognition in typically developing individuals, but not in ASD. Transl Psychiatry 2020; 10:221. [PMID: 32636360 PMCID: PMC7341857 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-020-00903-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2019] [Revised: 06/05/2020] [Accepted: 06/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Faces and voices are prominent cues for person-identity recognition. Face recognition behavior and associated brain responses can be enhanced by intranasal administration of oxytocin. It is unknown whether oxytocin can also augment voice-identity recognition mechanisms. To find it out is particularly relevant for individuals who have difficulties recognizing voice identity such as individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We conducted a combined behavioral and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study to investigate voice-identity recognition following intranasal administration of oxytocin or placebo in a group of adults diagnosed with ASD (full-scale intelligence quotient > 85) and pairwise-matched typically developing (TD) controls. A single dose of 24 IU oxytocin was administered in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled and cross-over design. In the control group, but not in the ASD group, administration of oxytocin compared to placebo increased responses to recognition of voice identity in contrast to speech in the right posterior superior temporal sulcus/gyrus (pSTS/G) - a region implicated in the perceptual analysis of voice-identity information. In the ASD group, the right pSTS/G responses were positively correlated with voice-identity recognition accuracy in the oxytocin condition, but not in the placebo condition. Oxytocin did not improve voice-identity recognition performance at the group level. The ASD compared to the control group had lower right pSTS/G responses to voice-identity recognition. Since ASD is known to have atypical pSTS/G, the results indicate that the potential of intranasal oxytocin to enhance mechanisms for voice-identity recognition might be variable and dependent on the functional integrity of this brain region.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kamila Borowiak
- Technische Universität Dresden, Bamberger Straße 7, 01187, Dresden, Germany.
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.
- Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt University of Berlin, Luisenstraße 56, 10117, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Katharina von Kriegstein
- Technische Universität Dresden, Bamberger Straße 7, 01187, Dresden, Germany
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
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Chen S, Zhu Y, Wayland R, Yang Y. How musical experience affects tone perception efficiency by musicians of tonal and non-tonal speakers? PLoS One 2020; 15:e0232514. [PMID: 32384088 PMCID: PMC7209303 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0232514] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2019] [Accepted: 04/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
PURPOSE To investigate if, regardless of language background (tonal or non-tonal), musicians may show stronger CP than non-musicians; To examine if native speakers of English (English or non-tonal musicians henceforth) or Mandarin Chinese (Mandarin or tonal musicians henceforth) can better accommodate multiple functions of the same acoustic cue and if musicians' sensitivity to pitch of lexical tones comes at the cost of slower processing. METHOD English and Mandarin Musicians and non-musicians performed a categorical identification and a discrimination task on rising and falling continua of fundamental frequency on two vowels with 9 duration values. RESULTS Non-tonal musicians exhibited significantly stronger categorical perception of pitch contour than non-tonal non-musicians. However, tonal musicians did not consistently perceive the two types of pitch directions more categorically than tonal non-musicians. Both tonal and non-tonal musicians also benefited more from increasing stimulus duration in processing pitch changes than non-musicians and they generally require less time for pitch processing. Musicians were also more sensitive to intrinsic F0 in pitch perception and differences of pitch types. CONCLUSION The effect of musical training strengthens categorical perception more consistently in non-tonal speakers than tonal speakers. Overall, musicians benefit more from increased stimulus duration, due perhaps to their greater sensitivity to temporal information, thus allowing them to be better at forming a more robust auditory representation and matching sounds to internalized memory templates. Musicians also attended more to acoustic details such as intrinsic F0 and pitch types in pitch processing, and yet, overall, their categorization of pitch was not compromised by traces of these acoustic details from their auditory short-term working memory. These findings may lead to a better understanding of pitch perception deficits in special populations, particularly among individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
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Affiliation(s)
- Si Chen
- Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Hong Kong Polytechnic University-Peking University Research Centre on Chinese Linguistics, Hong Kong, China
| | - Yiqing Zhu
- Department of Linguistics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - Ratree Wayland
- Department of Linguistics, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, United States of America
| | - Yike Yang
- Department of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China
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Brief Report: Speech-in-Noise Recognition and the Relation to Vocal Pitch Perception in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Typical Development. J Autism Dev Disord 2020; 50:356-363. [PMID: 31583624 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-019-04244-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
We tested the ability to recognise speech-in-noise and its relation to the ability to discriminate vocal pitch in adults with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and typically developed adults (matched pairwise on age, sex, and IQ). Typically developed individuals understood speech in higher noise levels as compared to the ASD group. Within the control group but not within the ASD group, better speech-in-noise recognition abilities were significantly correlated with better vocal pitch discrimination abilities. Our results show that speech-in-noise recognition is restricted in people with ASD. We speculate that perceptual impairments such as difficulties in vocal pitch perception might be relevant in explaining these difficulties in ASD.
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31
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Abstract
Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) reportedly possess preserved or superior music-processing skills compared to their typically developing counterparts. We examined auditory imagery and earworms (tunes that get "stuck" in the head) in adults with ASD and controls. Both groups completed a short earworm questionnaire together with the Bucknell Auditory Imagery Scale. Results showed poorer auditory imagery in the ASD group for all types of auditory imagery. However, the ASD group did not report fewer earworms than matched controls. These data suggest a possible basis in poor auditory imagery for poor prosody in ASD, but also highlight a separability between auditory imagery and control of musical memories. The separability is present in the ASD group but not in typically developing individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alex Bacon
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AL, UK
| | - C Philip Beaman
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AL, UK.
| | - Fang Liu
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Earley Gate, Whiteknights, Reading, RG6 6AL, UK
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32
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Zhang J, Meng Y, Wu C, Xiang YT, Yuan Z. Non-speech and speech pitch perception among Cantonese-speaking children with autism spectrum disorder: An ERP study. Neurosci Lett 2019; 703:205-212. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2019.03.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2018] [Revised: 02/13/2019] [Accepted: 03/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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33
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Burred JJ, Ponsot E, Goupil L, Liuni M, Aucouturier JJ. CLEESE: An open-source audio-transformation toolbox for data-driven experiments in speech and music cognition. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0205943. [PMID: 30947281 PMCID: PMC6448843 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0205943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2018] [Accepted: 02/15/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the past few years, the field of visual social cognition and face processing has been dramatically impacted by a series of data-driven studies employing computer-graphics tools to synthesize arbitrary meaningful facial expressions. In the auditory modality, reverse correlation is traditionally used to characterize sensory processing at the level of spectral or spectro-temporal stimulus properties, but not higher-level cognitive processing of e.g. words, sentences or music, by lack of tools able to manipulate the stimulus dimensions that are relevant for these processes. Here, we present an open-source audio-transformation toolbox, called CLEESE, able to systematically randomize the prosody/melody of existing speech and music recordings. CLEESE works by cutting recordings in small successive time segments (e.g. every successive 100 milliseconds in a spoken utterance), and applying a random parametric transformation of each segment’s pitch, duration or amplitude, using a new Python-language implementation of the phase-vocoder digital audio technique. We present here two applications of the tool to generate stimuli for studying intonation processing of interrogative vs declarative speech, and rhythm processing of sung melodies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Emmanuel Ponsot
- Science and Technology of Music and Sound (UMR9912, IRCAM/CNRS/Sorbonne Université), Paris, France
- Laboratoire des Systèmes Perceptifs (CNRS UMR 8248) and Département d’études cognitives, École Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, Paris, France
| | - Louise Goupil
- Science and Technology of Music and Sound (UMR9912, IRCAM/CNRS/Sorbonne Université), Paris, France
| | - Marco Liuni
- Science and Technology of Music and Sound (UMR9912, IRCAM/CNRS/Sorbonne Université), Paris, France
| | - Jean-Julien Aucouturier
- Science and Technology of Music and Sound (UMR9912, IRCAM/CNRS/Sorbonne Université), Paris, France
- * E-mail:
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34
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Schelinski S, von Kriegstein K. The Relation Between Vocal Pitch and Vocal Emotion Recognition Abilities in People with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Typical Development. J Autism Dev Disord 2019; 49:68-82. [PMID: 30022285 PMCID: PMC6331502 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-018-3681-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
We tested the relation between vocal emotion and vocal pitch perception abilities in adults with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and pairwise matched adults with typical development. The ASD group had impaired vocal but typical non-vocal pitch and vocal timbre perception abilities. The ASD group showed less accurate vocal emotion perception than the comparison group and vocal emotion perception abilities were correlated with traits and symptoms associated with ASD. Vocal pitch and vocal emotion perception abilities were significantly correlated in the comparison group only. Our results suggest that vocal emotion recognition difficulties in ASD might not only be based on difficulties with complex social tasks, but also on difficulties with processing of basic sensory features, such as vocal pitch.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie Schelinski
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Technische Universität Dresden, Faculty of Psychology, Bamberger Straße 7, 01187 Dresden, Germany
| | - Katharina von Kriegstein
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1a, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
- Technische Universität Dresden, Faculty of Psychology, Bamberger Straße 7, 01187 Dresden, Germany
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35
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Abstract
In speech, social evaluations of a speaker’s dominance or trustworthiness are conveyed by distinguishing, but little-understood, pitch variations. This work describes how to combine state-of-the-art vocal pitch transformations with the psychophysical technique of reverse correlation and uses this methodology to uncover the prosodic prototypes that govern such social judgments in speech. This finding is of great significance, because the exact shape of these prototypes, and how they vary with sex, age, and culture, is virtually unknown, and because prototypes derived with the method can then be reapplied to arbitrary spoken utterances, thus providing a principled way to modulate personality impressions in speech. Human listeners excel at forming high-level social representations about each other, even from the briefest of utterances. In particular, pitch is widely recognized as the auditory dimension that conveys most of the information about a speaker’s traits, emotional states, and attitudes. While past research has primarily looked at the influence of mean pitch, almost nothing is known about how intonation patterns, i.e., finely tuned pitch trajectories around the mean, may determine social judgments in speech. Here, we introduce an experimental paradigm that combines state-of-the-art voice transformation algorithms with psychophysical reverse correlation and show that two of the most important dimensions of social judgments, a speaker’s perceived dominance and trustworthiness, are driven by robust and distinguishing pitch trajectories in short utterances like the word “Hello,” which remained remarkably stable whether male or female listeners judged male or female speakers. These findings reveal a unique communicative adaptation that enables listeners to infer social traits regardless of speakers’ physical characteristics, such as sex and mean pitch. By characterizing how any given individual’s mental representations may differ from this generic code, the method introduced here opens avenues to explore dysprosody and social-cognitive deficits in disorders like autism spectrum and schizophrenia. In addition, once derived experimentally, these prototypes can be applied to novel utterances, thus providing a principled way to modulate personality impressions in arbitrary speech signals.
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36
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Zhang J, Meng Y, Wu C, Zhou DQ. Writing System Modulates the Association between Sensitivity to Acoustic Cues in Music and Reading Ability: Evidence from Chinese-English Bilingual Children. Front Psychol 2017; 8:1965. [PMID: 29170647 PMCID: PMC5684486 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2017] [Accepted: 10/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Music and language share many attributes and a large body of evidence shows that sensitivity to acoustic cues in music is positively related to language development and even subsequent reading acquisition. However, such association was mainly found in alphabetic languages. What remains unclear is whether sensitivity to acoustic cues in music is associated with reading in Chinese, a morphosyllabic language. The present study aimed to answer this question by measuring music (i.e., musical metric perception and pitch discrimination), language (i.e., phonological awareness, lexical tone sensitivity), and reading abilities (i.e., word recognition) among 54 third-grade Chinese-English bilingual children. After controlling for age and non-verbal intelligence, we found that both musical metric perception and pitch discrimination accounted for unique variance of Chinese phonological awareness while pitch discrimination rather than musical metric perception predicted Chinese lexical tone sensitivity. More importantly, neither musical metric perception nor pitch discrimination was associated with Chinese reading. As for English, musical metric perception and pitch discrimination were correlated with both English phonological awareness and English reading. Furthermore, sensitivity to acoustic cues in music was associated with English reading through the mediation of English phonological awareness. The current findings indicate that the association between sensitivity to acoustic cues in music and reading may be modulated by writing systems. In Chinese, the mapping between orthography and phonology is not as transparent as in alphabetic languages such as English. Thus, this opaque mapping may alter the auditory perceptual sensitivity in music to Chinese reading.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yaxuan Meng
- Faculty of Education, University of Macau, Macau, China
| | - Chenggang Wu
- Faculty of Education, University of Macau, Macau, China
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37
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DePriest J, Glushko A, Steinhauer K, Koelsch S. Language and music phrase boundary processing in Autism Spectrum Disorder: An ERP study. Sci Rep 2017; 7:14465. [PMID: 29089535 PMCID: PMC5663964 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-14538-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2016] [Accepted: 10/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is frequently associated with communicative impairment, regardless of intelligence level or mental age. Impairment of prosodic processing in particular is a common feature of ASD. Despite extensive overlap in neural resources involved in prosody and music processing, music perception seems to be spared in this population. The present study is the first to investigate prosodic phrasing in ASD in both language and music, combining event-related brain potential (ERP) and behavioral methods. We tested phrase boundary processing in language and music in neuro-typical adults and high-functioning individuals with ASD. We targeted an ERP response associated with phrase boundary processing in both language and music - i.e., the Closure Positive Shift (CPS). While a language-CPS was observed in the neuro-typical group, for ASD participants a smaller response failed to reach statistical significance. In music, we found a boundary-onset music-CPS for both groups during pauses between musical phrases. Our results support the view of preserved processing of musical cues in ASD individuals, with a corresponding prosodic impairment. This suggests that, despite the existence of a domain-general processing mechanism (the CPS), key differences in the integration of features of language and music may lead to the prosodic impairment in ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- John DePriest
- Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
- Program in Linguistics, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana, United States of America.
| | - Anastasia Glushko
- Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- The Centre for Research on Brain, Language and Music (CRBLM), Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Karsten Steinhauer
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
- The Centre for Research on Brain, Language and Music (CRBLM), Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Stefan Koelsch
- Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
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38
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Huang D, Yu L, Wang X, Fan Y, Wang S, Zhang Y. Distinct patterns of discrimination and orienting for temporal processing of speech and nonspeech in Chinese children with autism: an event-related potential study. Eur J Neurosci 2017; 47:662-668. [DOI: 10.1111/ejn.13657] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2016] [Revised: 08/09/2017] [Accepted: 08/10/2017] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dan Huang
- School of Psychology; South China Normal University; Guangzhou 510631 China
- Guangzhou Rehabilitation and Research Center for Children with Autism; Guangzhou Cana School; Guangzhou China
| | - Luodi Yu
- School of Psychology; South China Normal University; Guangzhou 510631 China
- Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences; University of Minnesota; Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
| | - Xiaoyue Wang
- School of Psychology; South China Normal University; Guangzhou 510631 China
| | - Yuebo Fan
- Guangzhou Rehabilitation and Research Center for Children with Autism; Guangzhou Cana School; Guangzhou China
| | - Suiping Wang
- School of Psychology; South China Normal University; Guangzhou 510631 China
- Center for Studies of Psychological Application; South China Normal University; Guangzhou China
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science; South China Normal University; Guangzhou China
| | - Yang Zhang
- Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Sciences; University of Minnesota; Minneapolis MN 55455 USA
- Center for Neurobehavioral Development; University of Minnesota; Minneapolis MN USA
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39
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Wang X, Wang S, Fan Y, Huang D, Zhang Y. Speech-specific categorical perception deficit in autism: An Event-Related Potential study of lexical tone processing in Mandarin-speaking children. Sci Rep 2017; 7:43254. [PMID: 28225070 PMCID: PMC5320551 DOI: 10.1038/srep43254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2016] [Accepted: 01/20/2017] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent studies reveal that tonal language speakers with autism have enhanced neural sensitivity to pitch changes in nonspeech stimuli but not to lexical tone contrasts in their native language. The present ERP study investigated whether the distinct pitch processing pattern for speech and nonspeech stimuli in autism was due to a speech-specific deficit in categorical perception of lexical tones. A passive oddball paradigm was adopted to examine two groups (16 in the autism group and 15 in the control group) of Chinese children’s Mismatch Responses (MMRs) to equivalent pitch deviations representing within-category and between-category differences in speech and nonspeech contexts. To further examine group-level differences in the MMRs to categorical perception of speech/nonspeech stimuli or lack thereof, neural oscillatory activities at the single trial level were further calculated with the inter-trial phase coherence (ITPC) measure for the theta and beta frequency bands. The MMR and ITPC data from the children with autism showed evidence for lack of categorical perception in the lexical tone condition. In view of the important role of lexical tones in acquiring a tonal language, the results point to the necessity of early intervention for the individuals with autism who show such a speech-specific categorical perception deficit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyue Wang
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Suiping Wang
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China.,Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, 510631, China.,Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Yuebo Fan
- Guangzhou Rehabilitation and Research Center for Children with Autism, Guangzhou Cana School, Guangzhou, 510540, China
| | - Dan Huang
- Guangzhou Rehabilitation and Research Center for Children with Autism, Guangzhou Cana School, Guangzhou, 510540, China
| | - Yang Zhang
- Department of Speech-Language-Hearing Science, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA.,Center for Neurobehavioral Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA
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40
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Schelinski S, Roswandowitz C, von Kriegstein K. Voice identity processing in autism spectrum disorder. Autism Res 2016; 10:155-168. [PMID: 27404447 DOI: 10.1002/aur.1639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2015] [Revised: 04/01/2016] [Accepted: 04/04/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
People with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have difficulties in identifying another person by face and voice. This might contribute considerably to the development of social cognition and interaction difficulties. The characteristics of the voice recognition deficit in ASD are unknown. Here, we used a comprehensive behavioral test battery to systematically investigate voice processing in high-functioning ASD (n = 16) and typically developed pair-wise matched controls (n = 16). The ASD group had particular difficulties with discriminating, learning, and recognizing unfamiliar voices, while recognizing famous voices was relatively intact. Tests on acoustic processing abilities showed that the ASD group had a specific deficit in vocal pitch perception that was dissociable from otherwise intact acoustic processing (i.e., musical pitch, musical, and vocal timbre perception). Our results allow a characterization of the voice recognition deficit in ASD: The findings indicate that in high-functioning ASD, the difficulty to recognize voices is particularly pronounced for learning novel voices and the recognition of unfamiliar peoples' voices. This pattern might be indicative of difficulties with integrating the acoustic characteristics of the voice into a coherent percept-a function that has been previously associated with voice-selective regions in the posterior superior temporal sulcus/gyrus of the human brain. Autism Res 2017, 10: 155-168. © 2016 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie Schelinski
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,International Max Planck Research School on Neuroscience of Communication, Leipzig, Germany.,Humboldt University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Claudia Roswandowitz
- International Max Planck Research School on Neuroscience of Communication, Leipzig, Germany
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