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Griebel U, Oller DK. From emotional signals to symbols. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1135288. [PMID: 38629043 PMCID: PMC11020113 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1135288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2022] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
The quest for the origins of language is a diverse enterprise, where research from a variety of disciplines brings area-specific ideas and area-specific terminology to bear. This variety often results in misunderstandings and misconceptions about communication in various species. In the present paper, we argue for focus on emotional systems as the primary motivators for social signals in animals in general. This focus can help resolve discrepancies of interpretation among different areas of inquiry and can illuminate distinctions among different social signals as well as their phylogenetic origins in animals and especially in humans. We advocate, following Jaak Panksepp, a view wherein the Seeking System, the endogenous tendency to search and explore, is the most fundamental emotional motivation. The Seeking System forms the basis for flexible, voluntary, and exploratory control of motor systems and makes much of learning possible. The relative lack of vocal learning and expression in nonhuman primates contrasted with extensive vocal learning and expression in humans began, we propose, with the evolution in ancient hominins of a necessary foundation for the many subsequent capabilities required for language. That foundation was, according to the reasoning, naturally selected in the form of neurological connections between the Seeking System and mechanisms of glottal/phonatory control. The new connections allowed ancient hominins to develop flexible, endogenous vocal fitness signals produced at very high rates and including large numbers of discrete syllables, recombinable to form syllable combinations with many prosodic variations. The increasing sociality of hominins supported evolution of massive expansion in the utilization of these flexible vocal forms to allow development of words and sentences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrike Griebel
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States
- The Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States
- The Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - D. Kimbrough Oller
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States
- The Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States
- The Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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Su PL, Yoo H, Ramsay G, Long HL, Bene ER, Klaiman C, Pulver SL, Richardson S, Pileggi ML, Brane N, Oller DK. Foundations of Vocal Category Development in Autistic Infants. J Autism Dev Disord 2024:10.1007/s10803-024-06267-9. [PMID: 38403868 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-024-06267-9] [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: 01/23/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
The present study compared the infant's tendency in the first year of life to produce clusters of particular vocal types (squeals, vocants, and growls) in typically developing (TD) and autistic infants. Vocal clustering provides evidence of vocal category formation and may establish a foundation for speech development. Specifically, we compared the extent of vocal clustering across outcome groups and age groups. We also examined the associations between the extent of vocal clustering and later outcomes at 2 years within the autistic group. Randomly selected 5-min segments (27,153 5-min segments total) from 1293 all-day home recordings from 103 TD infants and 44 autistic infants across the first year were humancoded (about 9.75 h of data coded per infant on average) to derive vocal clustering patterns. Fisher's exact tests were used to compare the occurrence of squeals versus vocants, as well as growls versus vocants, across coded segments. Infants in both groups demonstrated clear clustering patterns of squeals and growls across all age groups. The extent of vocal clustering in the autistic group did not correlate significantly with later language, repetitive behavior, or autism severity outcomes. These findings highlight the robustness of the systematic production of vocal categories across the first year of life. The similarity of the clustering patterns in the TD and autistic groups suggests that vocal category formation through active infant vocal exploration is a robust feature of early speech development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pumpki Lei Su
- Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing, School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX, USA.
- Callier Center for Communication Disorders, The University of Texas at Dallas, Dallas, TX, USA.
| | - Hyunjoo Yoo
- Department of Communicative Disorders, College of Arts & Sciences, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL, USA
| | - Gordon Ramsay
- Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Helen L Long
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Edina R Bene
- Origin of Language Laboratories, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Cheryl Klaiman
- Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Stormi L Pulver
- Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Shana Richardson
- Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Moira L Pileggi
- Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Natalie Brane
- Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - D Kimbrough Oller
- Origin of Language Laboratories, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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Yoo H, Su PL, Ramsay G, Long HL, Bene ER, Kimbrough Oller D. Infant vocal category exploration as a foundation for speech development. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.01.17.576142. [PMID: 38293228 PMCID: PMC10827196 DOI: 10.1101/2024.01.17.576142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/01/2024]
Abstract
Non-random exploration of infant speech-like vocalizations (e.g., squeals, growls, and vowel- like sounds or "vocants") is pivotal in speech development. This type of vocal exploration, often noticed when infants produce particular vocal types in clusters, serves two crucial purposes: it establishes a foundation for speech because speech requires formation of new vocal categories, and it serves as a basis for vocal signaling of wellness and interaction with caregivers. Despite the significance of clustering, existing research has largely relied on subjective descriptions and anecdotal observations regarding early vocal category formation. In this study, we aim to address this gap by presenting the first large-scale empirical evidence of vocal category exploration and clustering throughout the first year of life. We observed infant vocalizations longitudinally using all-day home recordings from 130 typically developing infants across the entire first year of life. To identify clustering patterns, we conducted Fisher's exact tests to compare the occurrence of squeals versus vocants, as well as growls versus vocants. We found that across the first year, infants demonstrated clear clustering patterns of squeals and growls, indicating that these categories were not randomly produced, but rather, it seemed, infants actively engaged in practice of these specific categories. The findings lend support to the concept of infants as manifesting active vocal exploration and category formation, a key foundation for vocal language.
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Bergelson E, Soderstrom M, Schwarz IC, Rowland CF, Ramírez-Esparza N, R. Hamrick L, Marklund E, Kalashnikova M, Guez A, Casillas M, Benetti L, van Alphen P, Cristia A. Everyday language input and production in 1,001 children from six continents. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2300671120. [PMID: 38085754 PMCID: PMC10756310 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2300671120] [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: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 10/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Language is a universal human ability, acquired readily by young children, who otherwise struggle with many basics of survival. And yet, language ability is variable across individuals. Naturalistic and experimental observations suggest that children's linguistic skills vary with factors like socioeconomic status and children's gender. But which factors really influence children's day-to-day language use? Here, we leverage speech technology in a big-data approach to report on a unique cross-cultural and diverse data set: >2,500 d-long, child-centered audio-recordings of 1,001 2- to 48-mo-olds from 12 countries spanning six continents across urban, farmer-forager, and subsistence-farming contexts. As expected, age and language-relevant clinical risks and diagnoses predicted how much speech (and speech-like vocalization) children produced. Critically, so too did adult talk in children's environments: Children who heard more talk from adults produced more speech. In contrast to previous conclusions based on more limited sampling methods and a different set of language proxies, socioeconomic status (operationalized as maternal education) was not significantly associated with children's productions over the first 4 y of life, and neither were gender or multilingualism. These findings from large-scale naturalistic data advance our understanding of which factors are robust predictors of variability in the speech behaviors of young learners in a wide range of everyday contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elika Bergelson
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA02138, United Kingdom
| | | | - Iris-Corinna Schwarz
- Department of Linguistics, Stockholm University, StockholmSE-106 91, Sweden
- Department of Special Education, Stockholm University, StockholmSE-106 91, Sweden
| | - Caroline F. Rowland
- Language Development Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen6525 XD, Netherlands
- Donders Centre for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen6525 XZ, Netherlands
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language, Australian National University, ACT2601, Australia
| | | | - Lisa R. Hamrick
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN47907
| | - Ellen Marklund
- Department of Linguistics, Stockholm University, StockholmSE-106 91, Sweden
| | - Marina Kalashnikova
- Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language, Donostia-San Sebastian20009, Spain
- Ikerbasque - Basque Foundation of Science, Bilbao48009, Spain
| | - Ava Guez
- Départment d’études Cognitives, École normale supérieure, École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, PSL University, Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistique, Paris75005, France
| | - Marisa Casillas
- Language Development Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen6525 XD, Netherlands
- Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language, Australian National University, ACT2601, Australia
- Comparative Human Development Department, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL60637
| | - Lucia Benetti
- School of Music, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH43210
| | | | - Alejandrina Cristia
- Départment d’études Cognitives, École normale supérieure, École des hautes études en sciences sociales, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, PSL University, Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistique, Paris75005, France
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Langehennig-Peristenidou A, Romero-Mujalli D, Bergmann T, Scheumann M. Features of animal babbling in the vocal ontogeny of the gray mouse lemur (Microcebus murinus). Sci Rep 2023; 13:21384. [PMID: 38049448 PMCID: PMC10696017 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-47919-7] [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: 06/12/2023] [Accepted: 11/20/2023] [Indexed: 12/06/2023] Open
Abstract
In human infants babbling is an important developmental stage of vocal plasticity to acquire maternal language. To investigate parallels in the vocal development of human infants and non-human mammals, seven key features of human babbling were defined, which are up to date only shown in bats and marmosets. This study will explore whether these features can also be found in gray mouse lemurs by investigating how infant vocal streams gradually resemble the structure of the adult trill call, which is not present at birth. Using unsupervised clustering, we distinguished six syllable types, whose sequential order gradually reflected the adult trill. A subset of adult syllable types was produced by several infants, with the syllable production being rhythmic, repetitive, and independent of the social context. The temporal structure of the calling bouts and the tempo-spectral features of syllable types became adult-like at the age of weaning. The age-dependent changes in the acoustic parameters differed between syllable types, suggesting that they cannot solely be explained by physical maturation of the vocal apparatus. Since gray mouse lemurs exhibit five features of animal babbling, they show parallels to the vocal development of human infants, bats, and marmosets.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Daniel Romero-Mujalli
- Institute of Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Bünteweg 17, 30559, Hannover, Germany
- Department for Environment Constructions and Design, Institute of Microbiology (IM), University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI), 6850, Mendrisio, Switzerland
| | - Tjard Bergmann
- Institute of Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Bünteweg 17, 30559, Hannover, Germany
| | - Marina Scheumann
- Institute of Zoology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, Bünteweg 17, 30559, Hannover, Germany
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Filippa M, Benis D, Adam-Darque A, Grandjean D, Hüppi PS. Preterm infants show an atypical processing of the mother's voice. Brain Cogn 2023; 173:106104. [PMID: 37949001 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2023.106104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2023] [Revised: 10/27/2023] [Accepted: 10/30/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
To understand the consequences of prematurity on language perception, it is fundamental to determine how atypical early sensory experience affects brain development. At term equivalent age, ten preterm and ten full-term newborns underwent high-density EEG during mother or stranger speech presentation, in the forward or backward order. A general group effect terms > preterms is evident in the theta frequency band, in the left temporal area, with preterms showing significant activation for strangers' and terms for the mother's voice. A significant group contrast in the low and high theta in the right temporal regions indicates higher activations for the stranger's voice in preterms. Finally, only full terms presented a late gamma band increase for the maternal voice, indicating a more mature brain response. EEG time-frequency analysis demonstrate that preterm infants are selectively responsive to stranger voices in both temporal hemispheres, and that they lack selective brain responses to their mother's forward voice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuela Filippa
- Division of Development and Growth, Child and Adolescent Department, Rue Willy-Donzé 1205 Genève, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland; Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Boulevard Carl-Vogt 101 Genève, Geneva, Switzerland.
| | - Damien Benis
- Division of Development and Growth, Child and Adolescent Department, Rue Willy-Donzé 1205 Genève, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland; Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Boulevard Carl-Vogt 101 Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Alexandra Adam-Darque
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neurorehabilitation, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Division of Neurorehabilitation, University Hospital of Geneva and University of Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, 1211 Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Didier Grandjean
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Boulevard Carl-Vogt 101 Genève, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Petra S Hüppi
- Division of Development and Growth, Child and Adolescent Department, Rue Willy-Donzé 1205 Genève, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
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7
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Long HL, Christensen L, Hayes S, Hustad KC. Vocal Characteristics of Infants at Risk for Speech Motor Involvement: A Scoping Review. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2023; 66:4432-4460. [PMID: 37850852 PMCID: PMC10715844 DOI: 10.1044/2023_jslhr-23-00336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Revised: 08/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/20/2023] [Indexed: 10/19/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE The purpose of this scoping review was to (a) summarize methodological characteristics of studies examining vocal characteristics of infants at high risk for neurological speech motor involvement and (b) report the state of the high-quality evidence on vocal characteristic trends of infants diagnosed or at high risk for cerebral palsy (CP). METHOD The PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items of Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) extension for scoping reviews was followed for reporting our review. Studies measured prelinguistic vocal characteristics of infants under 24 months with birth risk or genetic conditions known to commonly present with speech motor involvement. Fifty-five studies met criteria for Part 1. Eleven studies met criteria for synthesis in Part 2. RESULTS A smaller percentage of studies examined infants with or at risk for CP compared to studies examining genetic conditions such as Down syndrome. The median year of publication was 1999, with a median sample size of nine participants. Most studies were conducted in laboratory settings and used human coding of vocalizations produced during caregiver-child interactions. Substantial methodological differences were noted across all studies. A small number of high-quality studies of infants with or at risk for CP revealed high rates of marginal babbling, low rates of canonical babbling, and limited consonant diversity under 24 months. Mixed findings were noted across studies of general birth risk factors. CONCLUSIONS There is limited evidence available to support the early detection of speech motor involvement. Large methodological differences currently impact the ability to synthesize findings across studies. There is a critical need to conduct longitudinal research with larger sample sizes and advanced, modern technologies to detect vocal precursors of speech impairment to support the accurate diagnosis and prognosis of speech development in infants with CP and other clinical populations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sydney Hayes
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin–Madison
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Wisconsin–Madison
| | - Katherine C. Hustad
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin–Madison
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Wisconsin–Madison
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Johnson KT, Narain J, Quatieri T, Maes P, Picard RW. ReCANVo: A database of real-world communicative and affective nonverbal vocalizations. Sci Data 2023; 10:523. [PMID: 37543663 PMCID: PMC10404278 DOI: 10.1038/s41597-023-02405-7] [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] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Accepted: 07/24/2023] [Indexed: 08/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Nonverbal vocalizations, such as sighs, grunts, and yells, are informative expressions within typical verbal speech. Likewise, individuals who produce 0-10 spoken words or word approximations ("minimally speaking" individuals) convey rich affective and communicative information through nonverbal vocalizations even without verbal speech. Yet, despite their rich content, little to no data exists on the vocal expressions of this population. Here, we present ReCANVo: Real-World Communicative and Affective Nonverbal Vocalizations - a novel dataset of non-speech vocalizations labeled by function from minimally speaking individuals. The ReCANVo database contains over 7000 vocalizations spanning communicative and affective functions from eight minimally speaking individuals, along with communication profiles for each participant. Vocalizations were recorded in real-world settings and labeled in real-time by a close family member who knew the communicator well and had access to contextual information while labeling. ReCANVo is a novel database of nonverbal vocalizations from minimally speaking individuals, the largest available dataset of nonverbal vocalizations, and one of the only affective speech datasets collected amidst daily life across contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristina T Johnson
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| | - Jaya Narain
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA, USA.
| | - Thomas Quatieri
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Lincoln Laboratory, Lexington, MA, USA
| | - Pattie Maes
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Rosalind W Picard
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Media Lab, Cambridge, MA, USA
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Oller DK, Gilkerson J, Richards JA, Hannon S, Griebel U, Bowman DD, Brown JA, Yoo H, Warren SF. Sex differences in infant vocalization and the origin of language. iScience 2023; 26:106884. [PMID: 37378320 PMCID: PMC10291326 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.106884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Revised: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Seeking to discern the earliest sex differences in language-related activities, our focus is vocal activity in the first two years of life, following up on recent research that unexpectedly showed boys produced significantly more speech-like vocalizations (protophones) than girls during the first year of life.We now bring a much larger body of data to bear on the comparison of early sex differences in vocalization, data based on automated analysis of all-day recordings of infants in their homes. The new evidence, like that of the prior study, also suggests boys produce more protophones than girls in the first year and offers additional basis for informed speculation about biological reasons for these differences. More broadly, the work offers a basis for informed speculations about foundations of language that we propose to have evolved in our distant hominin ancestors, foundations also required in early vocal development of modern human infants.
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Affiliation(s)
- D Kimbrough Oller
- University of Memphis, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | | | | | | | - Ulrike Griebel
- University of Memphis, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Dale D Bowman
- University of Memphis, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
| | - Jane A Brown
- University of Memphis, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152, USA
| | - Hyunjoo Yoo
- University of Alabama, Communicative Disorders, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA
| | - Steven F Warren
- University of Kansas, Speech-Language-Hearing: Sciences and Disorders, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
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Elmlinger SL, Schwade JA, Vollmer L, Goldstein MH. Learning how to learn from social feedback: The origins of early vocal development. Dev Sci 2023; 26:e13296. [PMID: 35737680 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13296] [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: 07/28/2021] [Revised: 06/02/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Infants' prelinguistic vocalizations reliably organize vocal turn-taking with social partners, creating opportunities for learning to produce the sound patterns of the ambient language. This social feedback loop supporting early vocal learning is well-documented, but its developmental origins have yet to be addressed. When do infants learn that their non-cry vocalizations influence others? To test developmental changes in infant vocal learning, we assessed the vocalizations of 2- and 5-month-old infants in a still-face interaction with an unfamiliar adult. During the still-face, infants who have learned the social efficacy of vocalizing increase their babbling rate. In addition, to assess the expectations for social responsiveness that infants build from their everyday experience, we recorded caregiver responsiveness to their infants' vocalizations during unstructured play. During the still-face, only 5-month-old infants showed an increase in vocalizing (a vocal extinction burst) indicating that they had learned to expect adult responses to their vocalizations. Caregiver responsiveness predicted the magnitude of the vocal extinction burst for 5-month-olds. Because 5-month-olds show a vocal extinction burst with unfamiliar adults, they must have generalized the social efficacy of their vocalizations beyond their familiar caregiver. Caregiver responsiveness to infant vocalizations during unstructured play was similar for 2- and 5-month-olds. Infants thus learn the social efficacy of their vocalizations between 2 and 5 months of age. During this time, infants build associations between their own non-cry sounds and the reactions of adults, which allows learning of the instrumental value of vocalizing.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Laura Vollmer
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA
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11
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Long HL, Eichorn N, Kimbrough Oller D. A Probe Study on Vocal Development in Two Infants at Risk for Cerebral Palsy. Dev Neurorehabil 2023; 26:44-51. [PMID: 36335437 PMCID: PMC9822870 DOI: 10.1080/17518423.2022.2143923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/01/2021] [Revised: 10/03/2022] [Accepted: 11/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The present work examined canonical babbling ratios longitudinally as a measure of onset and consolidation of canonical babbling in two infants at risk of cerebral palsy (CP) between 5 and 16 months. Ten typically developing infants were included for comparison at 6, 9, 12, and 16-19 months. Canonical babbling ratios (CBRs) were calculated from 5-min segments, and follow-up diagnostic outcomes were collected between 24 and 33 months. The two infants at risk demonstrated low CBR growth trajectories compared to the typical infant group, and slightly different patterns of consolidation. The two infants at risk were later diagnosed with different levels of CP and speech impairment severity. All infants demonstrated greater variability than expected. Studying canonical babbling and other prelinguistic milestones in this population may inform our perspective of the involvement of the motor system in the vocal domain. Additional implications on the analysis of canonical babbling using all-day home recordings are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen L. Long
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Naomi Eichorn
- School of Communication Sciences & Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - D. Kimbrough Oller
- School of Communication Sciences & Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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Marschik PB, Widmann CAA, Lang S, Kulvicius T, Boterberg S, Nielsen-Saines K, Bölte S, Esposito G, Nordahl-Hansen A, Roeyers H, Wörgötter F, Einspieler C, Poustka L, Zhang D. Emerging Verbal Functions in Early Infancy: Lessons from Observational and Computational Approaches on Typical Development and Neurodevelopmental Disorders. ADVANCES IN NEURODEVELOPMENTAL DISORDERS 2022; 6:369-388. [PMID: 36540761 PMCID: PMC9762685 DOI: 10.1007/s41252-022-00300-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Research on typically developing (TD) children and those with neurodevelopmental disorders and genetic syndromes was targeted. Specifically, studies on autism spectrum disorder, Down syndrome, Rett syndrome, fragile X syndrome, cerebral palsy, Angelman syndrome, tuberous sclerosis complex, Williams-Beuren syndrome, Cri-du-chat syndrome, Prader-Willi syndrome, and West syndrome were searched. The objectives are to review observational and computational studies on the emergence of (pre-)babbling vocalisations and outline findings on acoustic characteristics of early verbal functions. METHODS A comprehensive review of the literature was performed including observational and computational studies focusing on spontaneous infant vocalisations at the pre-babbling age of TD children, individuals with genetic or neurodevelopmental disorders. RESULTS While there is substantial knowledge about early vocal development in TD infants, the pre-babbling phase in infants with neurodevelopmental and genetic syndromes is scarcely scrutinised. Related approaches, paradigms, and definitions vary substantially and insights into the onset and characteristics of early verbal functions in most above-mentioned disorders are missing. Most studies focused on acoustic low-level descriptors (e.g. fundamental frequency) which bore limited clinical relevance. This calls for computational approaches to analyse features of infant typical and atypical verbal development. CONCLUSIONS Pre-babbling vocalisations as precursor for future speech-language functions may reveal valuable signs for identifying infants at risk for atypical development. Observational studies should be complemented by computational approaches to enable in-depth understanding of the developing speech-language functions. By disentangling features of typical and atypical early verbal development, computational approaches may support clinical screening and evaluation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter B. Marschik
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Göttingen, Germany and Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- iDN - Interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Claudius A. A. Widmann
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Göttingen, Germany and Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Sigrun Lang
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Göttingen, Germany and Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Tomas Kulvicius
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Göttingen, Germany and Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Sofie Boterberg
- Research in Developmental Disorders Lab, Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Karin Nielsen-Saines
- Department of Pediatrics, David Geffen UCLA School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Sven Bölte
- Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Centre for Psychiatry Research, Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Region Stockholm, Karolinska Institutet & Stockholm Health Care Services, Stockholm, Sweden
- Curtin Autism Research Group, Curtin School of Allied Health, Curtin University, Perth, WA, Austria
| | - Gianluca Esposito
- Affiliative Behavior and Physiology Lab, Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento, Trento, Italy
| | - Anders Nordahl-Hansen
- Department of Education, ICT and Learning, Østfold University College, Halden, Norway
| | - Herbert Roeyers
- Research in Developmental Disorders Lab, Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Florentin Wörgötter
- Third Institute of Physics-Biophysics, Georg-August University Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Christa Einspieler
- iDN - Interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Luise Poustka
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Göttingen, Germany and Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Dajie Zhang
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Göttingen, Germany and Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- iDN - Interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
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13
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Kiese-Himmel C. [Early detection of primary developmental language disorders-increasing relevance due to changes in diagnostic criteria?]. Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz 2022; 65:909-916. [PMID: 35861864 PMCID: PMC9436846 DOI: 10.1007/s00103-022-03571-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Language development disorders (in German: Sprachentwicklungsstörungen, SES) are the most common developmental disorders in childhood. In contrast to "secondary SES," "primary SES" (prevalence about 7%) are not (co-)caused by other developmental disorders or diseases. In the German modification of the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-10-GM-22), primary SES are referred to as "circumscribed developmental disorders of speech and language" (in German: USES; international previously known as Specific Language Impairment SLI), with an intelligence quotient (IQ) < 85 as an exclusion criterion, among other criteria. In ICD-11, primary SES are listed as "developmental language disorders" (DLD).German-speaking speech and language therapists would now like to replace the term "USES" with "DLD" using the diagnostic criteria proposed by the international CATALISE consortium (Criteria and Terminology Applied to Language Impairments Synthesizing the Evidence), in an effort to redefine the disorder. However, according to this conceptualization, only children with an intellectual disability (IQ < 70) would be excluded from the diagnosis. This change in the diagnostic criteria would most likely result in an increase in prevalence of DLDs. This makes the issue of early detection more important than ever. This discussion paper explains that the public health relevance of primary SES is growing and that systematic early detection examinations will play an even more important role. With early diagnosis and treatment, risks in the areas of mental health, behaviour and skill development can be mitigated.Currently, diagnosis (and therapy) are usually carried out relatively late. The way out could lie in the application of neurobiological parameters. However, this requires further studies that examine child cohorts for early indicators in a prospective longitudinal design. The formation of an early detection index from several indicators should also be considered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christiane Kiese-Himmel
- Phoniatrisch/Pädaudiologische Psychologie, Institut für Medizinische Psychologie und Medizinische Soziologie, Universitätsmedizin Göttingen, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Waldweg 35, 37075, Göttingen, Deutschland.
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14
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Pouw W, Fuchs S. Origins Of Vocal-Entangled Gesture. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 141:104836. [PMID: 36031008 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Revised: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Gestures during speaking are typically understood in a representational framework: they represent absent or distal states of affairs by means of pointing, resemblance, or symbolic replacement. However, humans also gesture along with the rhythm of speaking, which is amenable to a non-representational perspective. Such a perspective centers on the phenomenon of vocal-entangled gestures and builds on evidence showing that when an upper limb with a certain mass decelerates/accelerates sufficiently, it yields impulses on the body that cascade in various ways into the respiratory-vocal system. It entails a physical entanglement between body motions, respiration, and vocal activities. It is shown that vocal-entangled gestures are realized in infant vocal-motor babbling before any representational use of gesture develops. Similarly, an overview is given of vocal-entangled processes in non-human animals. They can frequently be found in rats, bats, birds, and a range of other species that developed even earlier in the phylogenetic tree. Thus, the origins of human gesture lie in biomechanics, emerging early in ontogeny and running deep in phylogeny.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wim Pouw
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
| | - Susanne Fuchs
- Leibniz Center General Linguistics, Berlin, Germany.
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15
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Pokorny FB, Schmitt M, Egger M, Bartl-Pokorny KD, Zhang D, Schuller BW, Marschik PB. Automatic vocalisation-based detection of fragile X syndrome and Rett syndrome. Sci Rep 2022; 12:13345. [PMID: 35922535 PMCID: PMC9349308 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-17203-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Fragile X syndrome (FXS) and Rett syndrome (RTT) are developmental disorders currently not diagnosed before toddlerhood. Even though speech-language deficits are among the key symptoms of both conditions, little is known about infant vocalisation acoustics for an automatic earlier identification of affected individuals. To bridge this gap, we applied intelligent audio analysis methodology to a compact dataset of 4454 home-recorded vocalisations of 3 individuals with FXS and 3 individuals with RTT aged 6 to 11 months, as well as 6 age- and gender-matched typically developing controls (TD). On the basis of a standardised set of 88 acoustic features, we trained linear kernel support vector machines to evaluate the feasibility of automatic classification of (a) FXS vs TD, (b) RTT vs TD, (c) atypical development (FXS+RTT) vs TD, and (d) FXS vs RTT vs TD. In paradigms (a)–(c), all infants were correctly classified; in paradigm (d), 9 of 12 were so. Spectral/cepstral and energy-related features were most relevant for classification across all paradigms. Despite the small sample size, this study reveals new insights into early vocalisation characteristics in FXS and RTT, and provides technical underpinnings for a future earlier identification of affected individuals, enabling earlier intervention and family counselling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian B Pokorny
- iDN - interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria. .,Machine Intelligence & Signal Processing group (MISP), Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany. .,EIHW - Chair of Embedded Intelligence for Health Care and Wellbeing, University of Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany.
| | - Maximilian Schmitt
- EIHW - Chair of Embedded Intelligence for Health Care and Wellbeing, University of Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany
| | - Mathias Egger
- iDN - interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - Katrin D Bartl-Pokorny
- iDN - interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria.,EIHW - Chair of Embedded Intelligence for Health Care and Wellbeing, University of Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany
| | - Dajie Zhang
- iDN - interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria.,Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.,Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Björn W Schuller
- EIHW - Chair of Embedded Intelligence for Health Care and Wellbeing, University of Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany.,GLAM - Group on Language, Audio, & Music, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Peter B Marschik
- iDN - interdisciplinary Developmental Neuroscience, Division of Phoniatrics, Medical University of Graz, Graz, Austria.,Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany.,Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Göttingen, Germany.,Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND), Center for Psychiatry Research, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
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16
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Mayne J, McGowan EC, Chiem A, Nwanne O, Tucker R, Vohr BR. Randomised controlled trial of maternal infant-directed reading among hospitalised preterm infants. Acta Paediatr 2022; 111:1921-1932. [PMID: 35673850 DOI: 10.1111/apa.16445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2022] [Revised: 06/02/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
AIM A randomised trial to study the impact of a maternal-driven, infant-directed reading intervention on preterm infant language compared with matched controls. METHODS Infants born at 22-32 weeks in Women & Infants Neonatal Intensive Care were gestationally stratified to a reading intervention (n = 33) or standard care (n = 34). At 32-, 34- and 36-weeks postmenstrual age, 16-h language recordings were obtained in the hospital. Bivariate group comparisons and regressions adjusting for gestational age and multiples were run to predict word counts and conversational turns. Longitudinal analyses were conducted by negative binomial models containing intervention, randomised gestation group, recording number (1-3), an intervention × recording number interaction term and multiple birth adjustment by generalised estimating equations. RESULTS In adjusted analyses, by 36-weeks postmenstrual age, infants in the reading group had twice the number of conversational turns as infants receiving standard care (Rate ratio 1.98, 95% CI 1.33-2.93, p < 0.05). In longitudinal analyses, only infants in the reading group had a significant increase in the conversational turns between 32- and 36-weeks postmenstrual age (Rate ratio 2.45, 95% CI 1.45-4.14, p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS A maternal infant-directed reading curriculum in the hospital demonstrated a positive impact on interactive conversations by 36-weeks postmenstrual age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Mayne
- Department of Pediatrics, Women and Infants Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Elisabeth C McGowan
- Department of Pediatrics, Women and Infants Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Adrian Chiem
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Ogochukwu Nwanne
- Department of Pediatrics, Women and Infants Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Richard Tucker
- Department of Pediatrics, Women and Infants Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Betty R Vohr
- Department of Pediatrics, Women and Infants Hospital, Providence, Rhode Island, USA
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17
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Kiepura E, Niedźwiecka A, Kmita G. Silence matters: The role of pauses during dyadic maternal and paternal vocal interactions with preterm and full-term infants. JOURNAL OF CHILD LANGUAGE 2022; 49:451-468. [PMID: 33849673 DOI: 10.1017/s030500092100012x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
This study examined the characteristics of the vocal behaviors of parents and preterm infants, as compared to their term-born peers, at three months of age. Potential links between specific features of parental IDS and infants' vocal activity were also sought. We analyzed the frequencies and durations of vocalizations and pauses during the dyadic interactions of 19 preterm and 19 full-term infants with their mothers and fathers. The results showed that the duration of the vocalizations was shorter for the preterm than for the full-term infants, regardless of the interactive partner. Mothers vocalized more frequently and for a longer time than fathers, regardless of the group, but only the frequency of paternal utterances was significantly and positively correlated with the frequency and duration of infant vocalizations. Frequent conversational pauses of a relatively short total duration seemed to be related to more active infants' vocal participation, regardless of prematurity and parent gender.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Grażyna Kmita
- Institute of Mother and Child, Warsaw, Poland
- Faculty of Psychology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
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18
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Taylor D, Clay Z, Dahl CD, Zuberbühler K, Davila-Ross M, Dezecache G. Vocal functional flexibility: what it is and why it matters. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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19
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Hines M, Carpenito T, Martens A, Iizuka A, Aspinwall B, Zimmerman E. The home environment and its relation to vocalizations in the first year of life. PEDIATRIC MEDICINE (HONG KONG, CHINA) 2022; 5:3. [PMID: 35664538 PMCID: PMC9165690 DOI: 10.21037/pm-21-53] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Background Prior data has shown that the home environment impacts child development; however, there remains a paucity of research on how the home environment relates to child and adult words. Therefore, the aim of this prospective and quantitative study was to examine the relationship between the home environment and the quantity of vocalizations or words, and conversational turns produced by infants and parents at 3 and 12 months of age. Methods Seventy-two (56% male) full-term infants were assessed at 3 and 12 months of age. The home environment was assessed in person via interview and observation of the child's home using the Infant-Toddler Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (IT-HOME) Inventory subscales. Vocalizations were measured using the Language Environment Analysis (LENA) device, which measures the adult word count, child vocalization count and conversational turn count. These measures were then averaged for the most voluble, or vocal hour, in the recording period. Results At 3 months, IT-HOME Learning Materials scores were significantly associated with a decrease in adult words. We found a statistically significant difference in LENA outcomes between 3 and 12 months when stratified by sex. Specifically, male infants had significantly fewer vocalizations at 12 months when compared to 3 months, whereas females had more vocalizations. There was also a statistically significant difference in IT-HOME Learning Materials, Organization, Responsivity, and Total scores when comparing 3- and 12-month time points. Conclusions These findings reveal that the home environment changes significantly over the first year of life. At 3 months, Learning Materials in the home were related to adult words, while between 3 and 12 months, several aspects of the home significantly changed. Male children had reduced vocalizations between 3 and 12 months; whereas, female children had increased vocalizations during the same time points. Future research should focus on examining these outcomes with multiple measures, time points, and patient populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morgan Hines
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Thomas Carpenito
- Department of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alaina Martens
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alicia Iizuka
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Billi Aspinwall
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Emily Zimmerman
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA
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20
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Wass S, Phillips E, Smith C, Fatimehin EOOB, Goupil L. Vocal communication is tied to interpersonal arousal coupling in caregiver-infant dyads. eLife 2022; 11:77399. [PMID: 36537657 PMCID: PMC9833822 DOI: 10.7554/elife.77399] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 12/05/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
It has been argued that a necessary condition for the emergence of speech in humans is the ability to vocalise irrespective of underlying affective states, but when and how this happens during development remains unclear. To examine this, we used wearable microphones and autonomic sensors to collect multimodal naturalistic datasets from 12-month-olds and their caregivers. We observed that, across the day, clusters of vocalisations occur during elevated infant and caregiver arousal. This relationship is stronger in infants than caregivers: caregivers vocalisations show greater decoupling with their own states of arousal, and their vocal production is more influenced by the infant's arousal than their own. Different types of vocalisation elicit different patterns of change across the dyad. Cries occur following reduced infant arousal stability and lead to increased child-caregiver arousal coupling, and decreased infant arousal. Speech-like vocalisations also occur at elevated arousal, but lead to longer-lasting increases in arousal, and elicit more parental verbal responses. Our results suggest that: 12-month-old infants' vocalisations are strongly contingent on their arousal state (for both cries and speech-like vocalisations), whereas adults' vocalisations are more flexibly tied to their own arousal; that cries and speech-like vocalisations alter the intra-dyadic dynamics of arousal in different ways, which may be an important factor driving speech development; and that this selection mechanism which drives vocal development is anchored in our stress physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sam Wass
- Department of Psychology, University of East LondonLondonUnited Kingdom
| | - Emily Phillips
- Department of Psychology, University of East LondonLondonUnited Kingdom
| | - Celia Smith
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College LondonLondonUnited Kingdom
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21
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Long HL, Ramsay G, Griebel U, Bene ER, Bowman DD, Burkhardt-Reed MM, Oller DK. Perspectives on the origin of language: Infants vocalize most during independent vocal play but produce their most speech-like vocalizations during turn taking. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0279395. [PMID: 36584126 PMCID: PMC9803194 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0279395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2022] [Accepted: 12/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
A growing body of research emphasizes both endogenous and social motivations in human vocal development. Our own efforts seek to establish an evolutionary and developmental perspective on the existence and usage of speech-like vocalizations ("protophones") in the first year of life. We evaluated the relative occurrence of protophones in 40 typically developing infants across the second-half year based on longitudinal all-day recordings. Infants showed strong endogenous motivation to vocalize, producing vastly more protophones during independent vocal exploration and play than during vocal turn taking. Both periods of vocal play and periods of turn-taking corresponded to elevated levels of the most advanced protophones (canonical babbling) relative to periods without vocal play or without turn-taking. Notably, periods of turn taking showed even more canonical babbling than periods of vocal play. We conclude that endogenous motivation drives infants' tendencies to explore and display a great number of speech-like vocalizations, but that social interaction drives the production of the most speech-like forms. The results inform our previously published proposal that the human infant has been naturally selected to explore protophone production and that the exploratory inclination in our hominin ancestors formed a foundation for language.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen L. Long
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Gordon Ramsay
- Marcus Autism Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, United States of America
| | - Ulrike Griebel
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Edina R. Bene
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Dale D. Bowman
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
- Department of Mathematics, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Megan M. Burkhardt-Reed
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - D. Kimbrough Oller
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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22
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Gipson TT, Ramsay G, Ellison EE, Bene E, Long HL, Oller DK. Early Vocal Development in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex. Pediatr Neurol 2021; 125:48-52. [PMID: 34628143 PMCID: PMC8557126 DOI: 10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2021.08.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 08/24/2021] [Accepted: 08/29/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Our goal was to assess for the first time early vocalizations as precursors to speech in audio-video recordings of infants with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC). METHODS We randomly selected 40 infants with TSC from the TSC Autism Center of Excellence Research Network dataset. Using human observers, we analyzed 74 audio-video recordings within a flexible software-based coding environment. During the recordings, infants were engaged in developmental testing. We determined syllables per minute (volubility), the number of consonant-vowel combinations, such as 'ba' (canonical babbling), and the canonical babbling ratio (canonical syllables/total syllables) and compared the data with two groups of typically developing (TD) infants. One comparison group's data had come from a laboratory setting, while the other's had come from all-day Language Environment Analysis recordings at home. RESULTS Compared with TD infants in laboratory and all-day Language Environment Analysis recordings, entry into the canonical babbling stage was delayed in the majority of infants with TSC, and the canonical babbling ratio was low (TD mean = 0.346, SE = 0.19; TSC mean = 0.117, SE = 0.023). Volubility level in infants with TSC was less than half that of TD infants (TD mean = 9.82, SE = 5.78; TSC mean = 3.99, SE = 2.16). CONCLUSIONS Entry into the canonical stage and other precursors of speech development were delayed in infants with TSC and may signal poor language and developmental outcomes. Future studies are planned to assess prediction of language and developmental outcomes using these measures in a larger sample and in more precisely comparable recording circumstances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanjala T. Gipson
- University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Boling Center for Disabilities, Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, 50 N. Dunlap St., Memphis, TN 38105
| | - Gordon Ramsay
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine Atlanta GA, & Marcus Autism Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta GA
| | - Ellen E. Ellison
- University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Boling Center for Disabilities, Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital, Memphis, TN
| | - Edina Bene
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN
| | - Helen L. Long
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN
| | - D. Kimbrough Oller
- University of Memphis, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Institute for Intelligent Systems, Memphis, TN,Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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Gipson TT, Ramsay G, Ellison EE, Bene ER, Long HL, Oller DK. Early Vocal Development in Tuberous Sclerosis Complex. Pediatr Neurol 2021; 125:48-52. [PMID: 34628143 DOI: 10.1101/2021.01.06.21249364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 08/24/2021] [Accepted: 08/29/2021] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Our goal was to assess for the first time early vocalizations as precursors to speech in audio-video recordings of infants with tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC). METHODS We randomly selected 40 infants with TSC from the TSC Autism Center of Excellence Research Network dataset. Using human observers, we analyzed 74 audio-video recordings within a flexible software-based coding environment. During the recordings, infants were engaged in developmental testing. We determined syllables per minute (volubility), the number of consonant-vowel combinations, such as 'ba' (canonical babbling), and the canonical babbling ratio (canonical syllables/total syllables) and compared the data with two groups of typically developing (TD) infants. One comparison group's data had come from a laboratory setting, while the other's had come from all-day Language Environment Analysis recordings at home. RESULTS Compared with TD infants in laboratory and all-day Language Environment Analysis recordings, entry into the canonical babbling stage was delayed in the majority of infants with TSC, and the canonical babbling ratio was low (TD mean = 0.346, SE = 0.19; TSC mean = 0.117, SE = 0.023). Volubility level in infants with TSC was less than half that of TD infants (TD mean = 9.82, SE = 5.78; TSC mean = 3.99, SE = 2.16). CONCLUSIONS Entry into the canonical stage and other precursors of speech development were delayed in infants with TSC and may signal poor language and developmental outcomes. Future studies are planned to assess prediction of language and developmental outcomes using these measures in a larger sample and in more precisely comparable recording circumstances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanjala T Gipson
- University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Boling Center for Disabilities, Le Bonheur Children's Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee.
| | - Gordon Ramsay
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia; Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Ellen E Ellison
- University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center, Boling Center for Disabilities, Le Bonheur Children's Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee
| | - Edina R Bene
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee
| | - Helen L Long
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee
| | - D Kimbrough Oller
- University of Memphis, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Institute for Intelligent Systems, Memphis, Tennessee; Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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Oller DK, Ramsay G, Bene E, Long HL, Griebel U. Protophones, the precursors to speech, dominate the human infant vocal landscape. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20200255. [PMID: 34482735 PMCID: PMC8419580 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Human infant vocalization is viewed as a critical foundation for vocal learning and language. All apes share distress sounds (shrieks and cries) and laughter. Another vocal type, speech-like sounds, common in human infants, is rare but not absent in other apes. These three vocal types form a basis for especially informative cross-species comparisons. To make such comparisons possible we need empirical research documenting the frequency of occurrence of all three. The present work provides a comprehensive portrayal of these three vocal types in the human infant from longitudinal research in various circumstances of recording. Recently, the predominant vocalizations of the human infant have been shown to be speech-like sounds, or 'protophones', including both canonical and non-canonical babbling. The research shows that protophones outnumber cries by a factor of at least five based on data from random-sampling of all-day recordings across the first year. The present work expands on the prior reports, showing the protophones vastly outnumber both cry and laughter in both all-day and laboratory recordings in various circumstances. The data provide new evidence of the predominance of protophones in the infant vocal landscape and illuminate their role in human vocal learning and the origin of language. This article is part of the theme issue 'Vocal learning in animals and humans'.
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Affiliation(s)
- D. Kimbrough Oller
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Gordon Ramsay
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Marcus Autism Center, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Edina Bene
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Helen L. Long
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Ulrike Griebel
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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25
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Carouso-Peck S, Goldstein MH, Fitch WT. The many functions of vocal learning. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20200235. [PMID: 34482721 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The capacity to learn novel vocalizations has evolved convergently in a wide range of species. Courtship songs of male birds or whales are often treated as prototypical examples, implying a sexually selected context for the evolution of this ability. However, functions of learned vocalizations in different species are far more diverse than courtship, spanning a range of socio-positive contexts from individual identification, social cohesion, or advertising pair bonds, as well as agonistic contexts such as territorial defence, deceptive alarm calling or luring prey. Here, we survey the diverse usages and proposed functions of learned novel signals, to build a framework for considering the evolution of vocal learning capacities that extends beyond sexual selection. For each function that can be identified for learned signals, we provide examples of species using unlearned signals to accomplish the same goals. We use such comparisons to generate hypotheses concerning when vocal learning is adaptive, given a particular suite of socio-ecological traits. Finally, we identify areas of uncertainty where improved understanding would allow us to better test these hypotheses. Considering the broad range of potential functions of vocal learning will yield a richer appreciation of its evolution than a narrow focus on a few prototypical species. This article is part of the theme issue 'Vocal learning in animals and humans'.
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Ter Haar SM, Fernandez AA, Gratier M, Knörnschild M, Levelt C, Moore RK, Vellema M, Wang X, Oller DK. Cross-species parallels in babbling: animals and algorithms. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2021; 376:20200239. [PMID: 34482727 PMCID: PMC8419573 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2020.0239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
A key feature of vocal ontogeny in a variety of taxa with extensive vocal repertoires is a developmental pattern in which vocal exploration is followed by a period of category formation that results in a mature species-specific repertoire. Vocal development preceding the adult repertoire is often called ‘babbling’, a term used to describe aspects of vocal development in species of vocal-learning birds, some marine mammals, some New World monkeys, some bats and humans. The paper summarizes the results of research on babbling in examples from five taxa and proposes a unifying definition facilitating their comparison. There are notable similarities across these species in the developmental pattern of vocalizations, suggesting that vocal production learning might require babbling. However, the current state of the literature is insufficient to confirm this suggestion. We suggest directions for future research to elucidate this issue, emphasizing the importance of (i) expanding the descriptive data and seeking species with complex mature repertoires where babbling may not occur or may occur only to a minimal extent; (ii) (quasi-)experimental research to tease apart possible mechanisms of acquisition and/or self-organizing development; and (iii) computational modelling as a methodology to test hypotheses about the origins and functions of babbling. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Vocal learning in animals and humans’.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sita M Ter Haar
- Cognitive Neurobiology and Helmholtz Institute, Department of Psychology, Utrecht University, PO Box 80086, 3508 TB Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Ahana A Fernandez
- Museum für Naturkunde - Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Invalidenstrasse 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Maya Gratier
- Laboratoire Ethologie, Cognition, Développement, Paris Nanterre University, Nanterre, France
| | - Mirjam Knörnschild
- Museum für Naturkunde - Leibniz Institute for Evolution and Biodiversity Science, Invalidenstrasse 43, 10115 Berlin, Germany.,Animal Behavior Lab, Freie Universität, Berlin, Germany.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancón, Panama
| | - Claartje Levelt
- Leiden University Centre for Linguistics, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.,Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Roger K Moore
- Department Computer Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
| | - Michiel Vellema
- Cognitive Neurobiology and Helmholtz Institute, Department of Psychology, Utrecht University, PO Box 80086, 3508 TB Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Xiaoqin Wang
- Laboratory of Auditory Neurophysiology, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - D Kimbrough Oller
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA.,Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA.,Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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Burkhardt-Reed MM, Long HL, Bowman DD, Bene ER, Oller DK. The origin of language and relative roles of voice and gesture in early communication development. Infant Behav Dev 2021; 65:101648. [PMID: 34628105 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2021.101648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Revised: 09/10/2021] [Accepted: 09/12/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Both vocalization and gesture are universal modes of communication and fundamental features of language development. The gestural origins theory proposes that language evolved out of early gestural use. However, evidence reported here suggests vocalization is much more prominent in early human communication than gesture is. To our knowledge no prior research has investigated the rates of emergence of both gesture and vocalization across the first year in human infants. We evaluated the rates of gestures and speech-like vocalizations (protophones) in 10 infants at 4, 7, and 11 months of age using parent-infant laboratory recordings. We found that infant protophones outnumbered gestures substantially at all three ages, ranging from >35 times more protophones than gestures at 3 months, to >2.5 times more protophones than gestures at 11 months. The results suggest vocalization, not gesture, is the predominant mode of communication in human infants in the first year.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan M Burkhardt-Reed
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA; Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA.
| | - Helen L Long
- Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Dale D Bowman
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA; Department of Mathematics, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA; Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - Edina R Bene
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
| | - D Kimbrough Oller
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA; Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria; Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, USA
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28
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Abstract
Although it is generally assumed females have a language advantage over males, Oller et al., studying all-day recordings of 100 infants, found that boys in the first year of life produced more speech-like vocalizations than girls and that the effect size was more than four times larger than the commonly reported female language advantage.
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Abstract
Creating invariant representations from an everchanging speech signal is a major challenge for the human brain. Such an ability is particularly crucial for preverbal infants who must discover the phonological, lexical, and syntactic regularities of an extremely inconsistent signal in order to acquire language. Within the visual domain, an efficient neural solution to overcome variability consists in factorizing the input into a reduced set of orthogonal components. Here, we asked whether a similar decomposition strategy is used in early speech perception. Using a 256-channel electroencephalographic system, we recorded the neural responses of 3-mo-old infants to 120 natural consonant-vowel syllables with varying acoustic and phonetic profiles. Using multivariate pattern analyses, we show that syllables are factorized into distinct and orthogonal neural codes for consonants and vowels. Concerning consonants, we further demonstrate the existence of two stages of processing. A first phase is characterized by orthogonal and context-invariant neural codes for the dimensions of manner and place of articulation. Within the second stage, manner and place codes are integrated to recover the identity of the phoneme. We conclude that, despite the paucity of articulatory motor plans and speech production skills, pre-babbling infants are already equipped with a structured combinatorial code for speech analysis, which might account for the rapid pace of language acquisition during the first year.
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Chifa M, Hadar T, Politimou N, Reynolds G, Franco F. The Soundscape of Neonatal Intensive Care: A Mixed-Methods Study of the Parents' Experience. CHILDREN-BASEL 2021; 8:children8080644. [PMID: 34438535 PMCID: PMC8391440 DOI: 10.3390/children8080644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2021] [Revised: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 07/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Parents who have infants hospitalised in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) experience high levels of stress, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. However, whether sounds contribute to parents’ stress remains largely unknown. Critically, researchers lack a comprehensive instrument to investigate the relationship between sounds in NICUs and parental stress. To address this gap, this report presents the “Soundscape of NICU Questionnaire” (SON-Q), which was developed specifically to capture parents’ perceptions and beliefs about the impact that sound had on them and their infants, from pre-birth throughout the NICU stay and in the first postdischarge period. Parents of children born preterm (n = 386) completed the SON-Q and the Perinatal PTSD Questionnaire (PPQ). Principal Component Analysis identifying underlying dimensions comprising the parental experience of the NICU soundscape was followed by an exploration of the relationships between subscales of the SON-Q and the PPQ. Moderation analysis was carried out to further elucidate relationships between variables. Finally, thematic analysis was employed to analyse one memory of sounds in NICU open question. The results highlight systematic associations between aspects of the NICU soundscape and parental stress/trauma. The findings underscore the importance of developing specific studies in this area and devising interventions to best support parents’ mental health, which could in turn support infants’ developmental outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Chifa
- Psychology Department, Faculty of Science and Technology, Middlesex University, London NW4 4BT, UK; (M.C.); (G.R.)
| | - Tamar Hadar
- Division of Expressive Therapies, Graduate School of Arts & Social Sciences, Lesley University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA;
| | - Nina Politimou
- Institute of Education, University College London, London WC1H 0AA, UK;
| | - Gemma Reynolds
- Psychology Department, Faculty of Science and Technology, Middlesex University, London NW4 4BT, UK; (M.C.); (G.R.)
| | - Fabia Franco
- Psychology Department, Faculty of Science and Technology, Middlesex University, London NW4 4BT, UK; (M.C.); (G.R.)
- Correspondence:
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31
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Ståhlberg‐Forsén E, Aija A, Kaasik B, Latva R, Ahlqvist‐Björkroth S, Toome L, Lehtonen L, Stolt S. The validity of the Language Environment Analysis system in two neonatal intensive care units. Acta Paediatr 2021; 110:2045-2051. [PMID: 33555079 DOI: 10.1111/apa.15802] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Revised: 02/03/2021] [Accepted: 02/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
AIM To evaluate the validity of the Language Environment Analysis (LENA) system's automatic measures in two neonatal intensive care units supporting parent-infant closeness, and in two Finno-Ugric languages: Finnish and Estonian. METHODS The sound environment of 70 very preterm infants was recorded for 16 h in the neonatal intensive care units with the LENA system roughly at the gestational age of 32 (+2) weeks. Of these, the recordings of 14 infants (20%, two 5-min samples with a high percentage of speech, totally 140 min) were analysed in detail and in two different ways. Parental closeness diaries were used to document the presence of the parents. Agreements between LENA system and human coder estimates were analysed. RESULTS Findings showed a high variation in agreements. The highest agreements were found in female and adult word counts (r = 0.91 and 0.95). The agreements for child vocalisation count, conversational turns and silence were modest or low (r = -0.03 to 0.64). CONCLUSION Our study provides novel information on the validity of the LENA system in the neonatal intensive care unit. Findings show that the LENA system provides valid information on adult words, but LENA estimates for child vocalisations were less valid at this early age.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Anette Aija
- Tallinn Children’s Hospital Tallinn Estonia
- University of Turku Turku Finland
| | | | | | | | - Liis Toome
- Tallinn Children’s Hospital Tallinn Estonia
| | - Liisa Lehtonen
- University of Turku Turku Finland
- Turku University Hospital Turku Finland
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32
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Addabbo M, Colombo L, Picciolini O, Tagliabue P, Turati C. Newborns’ ability to match non-speech audio-visual information in the absence of temporal synchrony. EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.1080/17405629.2021.1931105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Margaret Addabbo
- Department of Psychology, University of Milan-Bicocca, Milano, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Colombo
- Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Cà Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Italy
| | - Odoardo Picciolini
- Pediatric Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation Unit, Fondazione IRCCS Ca’ Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, Italy
| | - Paolo Tagliabue
- Neonatology and Intensive Care Unit, MBBM Foundation, San Gerardo Hospital, Monza, Italy
| | - Chiara Turati
- Department of Psychology, University of Milan-Bicocca, Milano, Italy
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33
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Infants' vocalizations at 6 months predict their productive vocabulary at one year. Infant Behav Dev 2021; 64:101588. [PMID: 34091421 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2021.101588] [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: 12/28/2020] [Revised: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Long before their first words, children communicate by using speech-like vocalizations. These protophones might be indicative of infants' later language development. We here examined infants' (n = 56) early vocalizations at 6 months (vocal reactivity scale of the IBQ-R) as a predictor of their expressive and receptive language at 12 months (German version of the CDI). Regression analyses revealed vocalizations to significantly predict expressive, but not receptive language. Our findings in German-learning 6-month-olds extend previous predictive evidence of early vocalizations reported for older infants. Together these findings are informative in light of early assessments monitoring typical and atypical language development.
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34
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Oller DK, Griebel U. Functionally Flexible Signaling and the Origin of Language. Front Psychol 2021; 11:626138. [PMID: 33574785 PMCID: PMC7870697 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.626138] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2020] [Accepted: 12/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
At the earliest break of ancient hominins from their primate relatives in vocal communication, we propose a selection pressure on vocal fitness signaling by hominin infants. Exploratory vocalizations, not tied to expression of distress or immediate need, could have helped persuade parents of the wellness and viability of the infants who produced them. We hypothesize that hominin parents invested more in infants who produced such signals of fitness plentifully, neglecting or abandoning them less often than infants who produced the sounds less frequently. Selection for such exploratory vocalization provided a critically important inclination and capability relevant to language, we reason, because the system that encouraged spontaneous vocalization also made vocalization functionally flexible to an extent that has not been observed in any other animal. Although this vocal flexibility did not by itself create language, it provided an essential foundation upon which language would evolve through a variety of additional steps. In evaluating this speculation, we consider presumable barriers to evolving language that are thought to be implications of Darwinian Theory. It has been claimed that communication always involves sender self-interest and that self-interest leads to deceit, which is countered through clever detection by receivers. The constant battle of senders and receivers has been thought to pose an insuperable challenge to honest communication, which has been viewed as a requirement of language. To make communication honest, it has been proposed that stable signaling requires costly handicaps for the sender, and since language cannot entail high cost, the reasoning has suggested an insurmountable obstacle to the evolution of language. We think this presumed honesty barrier is an illusion that can be revealed by recognition of the fact that language is not inherently honest and in light of the distinction between illocutionary force and semantics. Our paper also considers barriers to the evolution of language (not having to do with honesty) that we think may have actually played important roles in preventing species other than humans from evolving language.
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Affiliation(s)
- D. Kimbrough Oller
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
| | - Ulrike Griebel
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN, United States
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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35
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Lopez LD, Walle EA, Pretzer GM, Warlaumont AS. Adult responses to infant prelinguistic vocalizations are associated with infant vocabulary: A home observation study. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0242232. [PMID: 33237910 PMCID: PMC7688127 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0242232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2020] [Accepted: 10/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
This study used LENA recording devices to capture infants' home language environments and examine how qualitative differences in adult responding to infant vocalizations related to infant vocabulary. Infant-directed speech and infant vocalizations were coded in samples taken from daylong home audio recordings of 13-month-old infants. Infant speech-related vocalizations were identified and coded as either canonical or non-canonical. Infant-directed adult speech was identified and classified into different pragmatic types. Multiple regressions examined the relation between adult responsiveness, imitating, recasting, and expanding and infant canonical and non-canonical vocalizations with caregiver-reported infant receptive and productive vocabulary. An interaction between adult like-sound responding (i.e., the total number of imitations, recasts, and expansions) and infant canonical vocalizations indicated that infants who produced more canonical vocalizations and received more adult like-sound responses had higher productive vocabularies. When sequences were analyzed, infant canonical vocalizations that preceded and followed adult recasts and expansions were positively associated with infant productive vocabulary. These findings provide insights into how infant-adult vocal exchanges are related to early vocabulary development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas D. Lopez
- Psychological Sciences, University of California, Merced, California, United States of America
| | - Eric A. Walle
- Psychological Sciences, University of California, Merced, California, United States of America
| | - Gina M. Pretzer
- Psychological Sciences, University of California, Merced, California, United States of America
| | - Anne S. Warlaumont
- Department of Communication, University of California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
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36
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Maitre NL, Key AP, Slaughter JC, Yoder PJ, Neel ML, Richard C, Wallace MT, Murray MM. Neonatal Multisensory Processing in Preterm and Term Infants Predicts Sensory Reactivity and Internalizing Tendencies in Early Childhood. Brain Topogr 2020; 33:586-599. [PMID: 32785800 PMCID: PMC7429553 DOI: 10.1007/s10548-020-00791-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2020] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Multisensory processes include the capacity to combine information from the different senses, often improving stimulus representations and behavior. The extent to which multisensory processes are an innate capacity or instead require experience with environmental stimuli remains debated. We addressed this knowledge gap by studying multisensory processes in prematurely born and full-term infants. We recorded 128-channel event-related potentials (ERPs) from a cohort of 55 full-term and 61 preterm neonates (at an equivalent gestational age) in response to auditory, somatosensory, and combined auditory-somatosensory multisensory stimuli. Data were analyzed within an electrical neuroimaging framework, involving unsupervised topographic clustering of the ERP data. Multisensory processing in full-term infants was characterized by a simple linear summation of responses to auditory and somatosensory stimuli alone, which furthermore shared common ERP topographic features. We refer to the ERP topography observed in full-term infants as "typical infantile processing" (TIP). In stark contrast, preterm infants exhibited non-linear responses and topographies less-often characterized by TIP; there were distinct patterns of ERP topographies to multisensory and summed unisensory conditions. We further observed that the better TIP characterized an infant's ERPs, independently of prematurity, the more typical was the score on the Infant/Toddler Sensory Profile (ITSP) at 12 months of age and the less likely was the child to the show internalizing tendencies at 24 months of age. Collectively, these results highlight striking differences in the brain's responses to multisensory stimuli in children born prematurely; differences that relate to later sensory and internalizing functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathalie L Maitre
- Center for Perinatal Research at the Abigail Wexner Research Institute, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA.
- Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
- Department of Pediatrics, Nationwide Children's Hospital, 700 Children's Way, Columbus, OH, 43205, USA.
| | - Alexandra P Key
- Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - James C Slaughter
- Department of Biostatistics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Paul J Yoder
- Department of Special Education, Peabody College of Education and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Mary Lauren Neel
- Center for Perinatal Research at the Abigail Wexner Research Institute, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Céline Richard
- Center for Perinatal Research at the Abigail Wexner Research Institute, Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Mark T Wallace
- Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
- Departments of Psychology and Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Brain Institute, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Micah M Murray
- Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.
- The Laboratory for Investigative Neurophysiology (The LINE), Department of Radiology, University Hospital Center and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
- Sensory, Perceptual, and Cognitive Neuroscience Section, Center for Biomedical Imaging (CIBM) of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
- Department of Ophthalmology, Fondation Asile des aveugles and University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
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37
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Long HL, Bowman DD, Yoo H, Burkhardt-Reed MM, Bene ER, Oller DK. Social and endogenous infant vocalizations. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0224956. [PMID: 32756591 PMCID: PMC7406057 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0224956] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2019] [Accepted: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Research on infant vocal development has provided notable insights into vocal interaction with caregivers, elucidating growth in foundations for language through parental elicitation and reaction to vocalizations. A role for infant vocalizations produced endogenously, potentially providing raw material for interaction and a basis for growth in the vocal capacity itself, has received less attention. We report that in laboratory recordings of infants and their parents, the bulk of infant speech-like vocalizations, or "protophones", were directed toward no one and instead appeared to be generated endogenously, mostly in exploration of vocal abilities. The tendency to predominantly produce protophones without directing them to others occurred both during periods when parents were instructed to interact with their infants and during periods when parents were occupied with an interviewer, with the infants in the room. The results emphasize the infant as an agent in vocal learning, even when not interacting socially and suggest an enhanced perspective on foundations for vocal language.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen L. Long
- Origins of Language Laboratory, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Dale D. Bowman
- Department of Mathematics, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Hyunjoo Yoo
- Department of Communicative Disorders, College of Arts & Sciences, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States of America
| | - Megan M. Burkhardt-Reed
- Origins of Language Laboratory, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Edina R. Bene
- Origins of Language Laboratory, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - D. Kimbrough Oller
- Origins of Language Laboratory, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
- Institute for Intelligent Systems, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, United States of America
- Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research, Klosterneuburg, Austria
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38
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Filippa M, Menin D, Panebianco R, Monaci MG, Dondi M, Grandjean D. Live Maternal Speech and Singing Increase Self-Touch and Eye-Opening in Preterm Newborns: A Preliminary Study. JOURNAL OF NONVERBAL BEHAVIOR 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s10919-020-00336-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
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