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1. Exploring individual differences in musical rhythm and grammar skills in school-aged children with typically developing language

Author

Nitin, R, Gustavson, D, Aaron, A, Boorom, O, Bush, C, Wiens, N, Vaughan, C, Persici, V, Blain, S, Soman, U, Hambrick, D, Camarata, S, Devin McAuley &amp, J, Gordon, R, Rachana Nitin, Daniel E. Gustavson, Allison S. Aaron, Olivia A. Boorom, Catherine T. Bush, Natalie Wiens, Chloe Vaughan, Valentina Persici, Scott D. Blain, Uma Soman, David Z. Hambrick, Stephen M. Camarata, J. Devin McAuley &, Reyna L. Gordon, Nitin, R, Gustavson, D, Aaron, A, Boorom, O, Bush, C, Wiens, N, Vaughan, C, Persici, V, Blain, S, Soman, U, Hambrick, D, Camarata, S, Devin McAuley &amp, J, Gordon, R, Rachana Nitin, Daniel E. Gustavson, Allison S. Aaron, Olivia A. Boorom, Catherine T. Bush, Natalie Wiens, Chloe Vaughan, Valentina Persici, Scott D. Blain, Uma Soman, David Z. Hambrick, Stephen M. Camarata, J. Devin McAuley &, and Reyna L. Gordon

Abstract

A growing number of studies have shown a connection between rhythmic processing and language skill. It has been proposed that domain-general rhythm abilities might help children to tap into the rhythm of speech (prosody), cueing them to prosodic markers of grammatical (syntactic) information during language acquisition, thus underlying the observed correlations between rhythm and language. Working memory processes common to task demands for musical rhythm discrimination and spoken language paradigms are another possible source of individual variance observed in musical rhythm and language abilities. To investigate the nature of the relationship between musical rhythm and expressive grammar skills, we adopted an individual differences approach in N = 132 elementary school-aged children ages 5–7, with typical language development, and investigated prosodic perception and working memory skills as possible mediators. Aligning with the literature, musical rhythm was correlated with expressive grammar performance (r = 0.41, p < 0.001). Moreover, musical rhythm predicted mastery of complex syntax items (r = 0.26, p = 0.003), suggesting a privileged role of hierarchical processing shared between musical rhythm processing and children’s acquisition of complex syntactic structures. These relationships between rhythm and grammatical skills were not mediated by prosodic perception, working memory, or non-verbal IQ; instead, we uncovered a robust direct effect of musical rhythm perception on grammatical task performance. Future work should focus on possible biological endophenotypes and genetic influences underlying this relationship.

Published
2023

7. Meter processing and grammatical skills in school-aged children: an EEG study

Author

Scartozzi, A, Ladanyi, E, Wang, Y, Boorom, O, Persici, V, Gordon, R, Scartozzi, Alyssa, Ladanyi, Eniko, Wang, Youjia, Boorom, Olivia, Persici, Valentina, Gordon, Reyna L., Scartozzi, A, Ladanyi, E, Wang, Y, Boorom, O, Persici, V, Gordon, R, Scartozzi, Alyssa, Ladanyi, Eniko, Wang, Youjia, Boorom, Olivia, Persici, Valentina, and Gordon, Reyna L.

Abstract

Neural oscillations across frequency bands synchronize with linguistic and rhythmic structures in the absence of acoustic cues and motor movements (Ding et al., 2016; Iversen et al., 2009; Jones & Boltz, 1989). The present study aims to investigate whether meter processing differences, beyond the perception of acoustic patterns of rhythms, can account for individual differences in grammatical abilities. Expressive grammar (SPELT-3) and meter processing are measured in 5-8-year-old typically developing children together with nonverbal IQ (PTONI), and language abilities (TOLDP-4). Meter processing is measured with EEG in a passive listening paradigm, in which a simple rhythm is presented repeatedly with a physical accent 1) in the whole block (physical beat condition) or 2) only for the first ten trials of the block (induced beat condition). Neural responses to the beat are measured after the tenth trial of each block. Preliminary results (N=11, 8 female, mean age = 6.57) indicate a similar event-related response to the physical beats as to the induced beats. Furthermore, when considering children’s expressive grammatical abilities, preliminary results indicate a difference in the pattern of ERP responses given to the physical and induced beats in above-average expressive grammar (N=5) versus average expressive grammar participants (N=4). These results suggest that differences in meter processing skills may account for individual differences in grammatical abilities.

Published
2021

10. Is atypical rhythm a risk factor for developmental speech and language disorders?

Author

Ladanyi, E, Persici, V, Fiveash, A, Tillmann, B, Gordon, R, Ladanyi, Eniko, Persici, Valentina, Fiveash, Anna, Tillmann, Barbara, Gordon, Reyna L., Ladanyi, E, Persici, V, Fiveash, A, Tillmann, B, Gordon, R, Ladanyi, Eniko, Persici, Valentina, Fiveash, Anna, Tillmann, Barbara, and Gordon, Reyna L.

Abstract

Although a growing literature points to substantial variation in speech/language abilities related to individual differences in musical abilities, mainstream models of communication sciences and disorders have not yet incorporated these individual differences into childhood speech/language development. This article reviews three sources of evidence in a comprehensive body of research aligning with three main themes: (a) associations between musical rhythm and speech/language processing, (b) musical rhythm in children with developmental speech/language disorders and common comorbid attentional and motor disorders, and (c) individual differences in mechanisms underlying rhythm processing in infants and their relationship with later speech/language development. In light of converging evidence on associations between musical rhythm and speech/language processing, we propose the Atypical Rhythm Risk Hypothesis, which posits that individuals with atypical rhythm are at higher risk for developmental speech/language disorders. The hypothesis is framed within the larger epidemiological literature in which recent methodological advances allow for large-scale testing of shared underlying biology across clinically distinct disorders. A series of predictions for future work testing the Atypical Rhythm Risk Hypothesis are outlined. We suggest that if a significant body of evidence is found to support this hypothesis, we can envision new risk factor models that incorporate atypical rhythm to predict the risk of developing speech/language disorders. Given the high prevalence of speech/language disorders in the population and the negative long-term social and economic consequences of gaps in identifying children at-risk, these new lines of research could potentially positively impact access to early identification and treatment.

Published
2020

11. Neural entrainment, hierarchical processing, and morphosyntactic and rhythmic predictions in typical development, in Developmental Dyslexia, and in Developmental Language Disorder

Author

STUCCHI, NATALE ADOLFO, Persici, V, AROSIO, FABRIZIO, PERSICI, VALENTINA, STUCCHI, NATALE ADOLFO, Persici, V, AROSIO, FABRIZIO, and PERSICI, VALENTINA

Abstract

Il presente lavoro indaga i meccanismi di predizione e di sincronizzazione neurale nei bambini, sulla base dell’ipotesi che questi possano essere elementi rilevanti nei processi di elaborazione ritmica e morfosintattica. Sia il metro ritmico che il linguaggio sono organizzati in strutture gerarchiche in cui gli elementi sono ordinati secondo regole specifiche (Fitch & Martins, 2014). La conoscenza di queste regole porta alla formazione automatica di aspettative riguardo al materiale in arrivo; queste aspettative sono ritenute fondamentali per l'elaborazione efficiente del linguaggio e del ritmo, così anche come per la lettura (Guasti et al., 2017). In questa tesi abbiamo ipotizzato che migliori capacità di elaborazione gerarchica nel ritmo possano portare a migliori capacità di processamento di strutture gerarchiche nel linguaggio e che deficit in queste abilità possano portare allo sviluppo di disturbi del linguaggio e/o della lettura. Per valutare se le abilità nel fare previsioni strutturali correlino tra ritmo e il linguaggio, abbiamo studiato e confrontato le capacità di predire materiale linguistico (sulla base di informazioni morfosintattiche) e materiale ritmico in gruppi di bambini a sviluppo tipico (in inglese, TD) con o senza formazione musicale e in partecipanti con dislessia evolutiva (in inglese, DD). I risultati hanno confermato le nostre ipotesi, in quanto hanno mostrato predizioni strutturali migliori nei musicisti rispetto ai non-musicisti nel gruppo dei tipici e migliori predizioni strutturali nei TD rispetto ai bambini con dislessia. Inoltre, i risultati suggeriscono miglioramenti nell’efficienza delle strategie di processamento con l’aumentare dell’età. In secondo luogo, abbiamo ipotizzato che differenze individuali nella forza e nella efficienza con cui si fanno predizioni temporali e di contenuto possano dipendere da differenze individuali nell’efficienza e nella precisione dei meccanismi neurali di sincronizzazione delle oscillazioni c, This work investigates prediction mechanisms and neural entrainment in children as the possible elements underlying both rhythmic and morphosyntactic processing. Both rhythmic meter and language are organized in hierarchical structures in which elements are ordered following specific rules (Fitch and Martins, 2014). Knowledge of these rules triggers compulsive expectancies regarding incoming material; these are assumed to be fundamental for efficient language and rhythmic processing and for reading (Guasti et al., 2017; Grüter, Rohde and Schafer, 2014; Miyake, Onishi and Pöppel, 2004; Persici et al., 2019). In this work we hypothesized that better hierarchical processing abilities in rhythm may transfer to the language domain, and that deficits in hierarchical processing may lead to language and/or reading disorders. To test whether abilities in making structure-based predictions correlate across domains, we investigated the abilities to infer the arrival of morphosyntactic and rhythmic material in groups of children with typical language development (TD) with or without musical training, and in participants with Developmental Dyslexia (DD). Results confirmed our hypotheses, as they showed better structure-based predictions in musician children than in non-musician TD children, and in TD children than in DD children. Results also suggested that efficiency of processing strategies improves with age. Secondly, we hypothesized that individual differences in strength of timing and content structure-based predictions may be the result of individual differences in the efficiency and precision with which brain oscillations entrain to auditory stimuli (‘neural entrainment’). To address these hypotheses, we tested the neural responses of TD children and of children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) in an experimental paradigm that was designed to elicit different metrical (hierarchical) interpretations. Results showed that all children were sensitive to hierarchic

Published
2020

16. Lexical access and competition in bilingual children: The role of proficiency and the lexical similarity of the two languages

Author

Persici, V, Vihman, M, Burro, R, Majorano, M, PERSICI, VALENTINA, MAJORANO, MARINELLA, Persici, V, Vihman, M, Burro, R, Majorano, M, PERSICI, VALENTINA, and MAJORANO, MARINELLA

Abstract

Using a picture–auditory word recognition task, we examined how early child bilinguals access their languages and how the languages affect one another. Accuracy and response times in “false friends” (i.e., words with similar form but unrelated meanings) and semantically related words were compared with control conditions within and across languages and grades. Study 1 tested the performance of school-age children with balanced versus unbalanced knowledge of first-language (L1) Italian and second-language (L2) German. Study 2 compared unbalanced bilingual children with L1 Italian and L2 French or German to investigate the effect of lexical similarity in the children's languages. Children were found to activate both languages on receiving an auditory stimulus; performance in each language was affected by proficiency in the other language, degree of between-language similarity, and length of experience with each language. The BLINCS (Bilingual Language Interactive Network for Comprehension of Speech) model was invoked as a plausible framework for conceptualizing the nature of bilingual phonolexical representation and its effect on word recognition

Published
2019

23. Exploring individual differences in musical rhythm and grammar skills in school-aged children with typically developing language

Author

Rachana, Nitin, Gustavson, Daniel E., Aaron, Allison S., Boorom, Olivia A., Bush, Catherine T., Natalie, Wiens, Chloe, Vaughan, Persici, Valentina, Blain, Scott D., Uma, Soman, Hambrick, David Z., Camarata, Stephen M., Devin McAuley &amp, Gordon, Reyna L., Nitin, R, Gustavson, D, Aaron, A, Boorom, O, Bush, C, Wiens, N, Vaughan, C, Persici, V, Blain, S, Soman, U, Hambrick, D, Camarata, S, Devin McAuley &amp, J, and Gordon, R

Subjects
Multidisciplinary, grammar skill, children, musical rhythm, grammar skills, typical development
Abstract

A growing number of studies have shown a connection between rhythmic processing and language skill. It has been proposed that domain-general rhythm abilities might help children to tap into the rhythm of speech (prosody), cueing them to prosodic markers of grammatical (syntactic) information during language acquisition, thus underlying the observed correlations between rhythm and language. Working memory processes common to task demands for musical rhythm discrimination and spoken language paradigms are another possible source of individual variance observed in musical rhythm and language abilities. To investigate the nature of the relationship between musical rhythm and expressive grammar skills, we adopted an individual differences approach in N = 132 elementary school-aged children ages 5–7, with typical language development, and investigated prosodic perception and working memory skills as possible mediators. Aligning with the literature, musical rhythm was correlated with expressive grammar performance (r = 0.41, p p = 0.003), suggesting a privileged role of hierarchical processing shared between musical rhythm processing and children’s acquisition of complex syntactic structures. These relationships between rhythm and grammatical skills were not mediated by prosodic perception, working memory, or non-verbal IQ; instead, we uncovered a robust direct effect of musical rhythm perception on grammatical task performance. Future work should focus on possible biological endophenotypes and genetic influences underlying this relationship.

Published
2023

24. Meter processing and grammatical skills in school-aged children: an EEG study

Author

Scartozzi, Alyssa, Ladanyi, Eniko, Wang, Youjia, Boorom, Olivia, Persici, Valentina, Gordon, Reyna L., Scartozzi, A, Ladanyi, E, Wang, Y, Boorom, O, Persici, V, and Gordon, R

Subjects
neural entrainment, rhythm, language, meter, grammar, children
Abstract

Neural oscillations across frequency bands synchronize with linguistic and rhythmic structures in the absence of acoustic cues and motor movements (Ding et al., 2016; Iversen et al., 2009; Jones & Boltz, 1989). The present study aims to investigate whether meter processing differences, beyond the perception of acoustic patterns of rhythms, can account for individual differences in grammatical abilities. Expressive grammar (SPELT-3) and meter processing are measured in 5-8-year-old typically developing children together with nonverbal IQ (PTONI), and language abilities (TOLDP-4). Meter processing is measured with EEG in a passive listening paradigm, in which a simple rhythm is presented repeatedly with a physical accent 1) in the whole block (physical beat condition) or 2) only for the first ten trials of the block (induced beat condition). Neural responses to the beat are measured after the tenth trial of each block. Preliminary results (N=11, 8 female, mean age = 6.57) indicate a similar event-related response to the physical beats as to the induced beats. Furthermore, when considering children’s expressive grammatical abilities, preliminary results indicate a difference in the pattern of ERP responses given to the physical and induced beats in above-average expressive grammar (N=5) versus average expressive grammar participants (N=4). These results suggest that differences in meter processing skills may account for individual differences in grammatical abilities.

Published
2021

25. Neural entrainment, hierarchical processing, and morphosyntactic and rhythmic predictions in typical development, in Developmental Dyslexia, and in Developmental Language Disorder

Author

PERSICI, VALENTINA, Persici, V, and AROSIO, FABRIZIO

Subjects
ritmo, sintassi, children, disturbi linguaggio, neural entrainment, onde cerebrali, syntax, rhythm, bambini, L-LIN/01 - GLOTTOLOGIA E LINGUISTICA
Abstract

Il presente lavoro indaga i meccanismi di predizione e di sincronizzazione neurale nei bambini, sulla base dell’ipotesi che questi possano essere elementi rilevanti nei processi di elaborazione ritmica e morfosintattica. Sia il metro ritmico che il linguaggio sono organizzati in strutture gerarchiche in cui gli elementi sono ordinati secondo regole specifiche (Fitch & Martins, 2014). La conoscenza di queste regole porta alla formazione automatica di aspettative riguardo al materiale in arrivo; queste aspettative sono ritenute fondamentali per l'elaborazione efficiente del linguaggio e del ritmo, così anche come per la lettura (Guasti et al., 2017). In questa tesi abbiamo ipotizzato che migliori capacità di elaborazione gerarchica nel ritmo possano portare a migliori capacità di processamento di strutture gerarchiche nel linguaggio e che deficit in queste abilità possano portare allo sviluppo di disturbi del linguaggio e/o della lettura. Per valutare se le abilità nel fare previsioni strutturali correlino tra ritmo e il linguaggio, abbiamo studiato e confrontato le capacità di predire materiale linguistico (sulla base di informazioni morfosintattiche) e materiale ritmico in gruppi di bambini a sviluppo tipico (in inglese, TD) con o senza formazione musicale e in partecipanti con dislessia evolutiva (in inglese, DD). I risultati hanno confermato le nostre ipotesi, in quanto hanno mostrato predizioni strutturali migliori nei musicisti rispetto ai non-musicisti nel gruppo dei tipici e migliori predizioni strutturali nei TD rispetto ai bambini con dislessia. Inoltre, i risultati suggeriscono miglioramenti nell’efficienza delle strategie di processamento con l’aumentare dell’età. In secondo luogo, abbiamo ipotizzato che differenze individuali nella forza e nella efficienza con cui si fanno predizioni temporali e di contenuto possano dipendere da differenze individuali nell’efficienza e nella precisione dei meccanismi neurali di sincronizzazione delle oscillazioni cerebrali rispetto agli stimoli uditivi. Per testare queste ipotesi, abbiamo analizzato le risposte neurali di bambini TD e di bambini affetti da disturbo evolutivo del linguaggio (in inglese, DLD) in un paradigma sperimentale progettato per suscitare diverse interpretazioni metriche (e quindi gerarchiche). I risultati hanno mostrato che tutti i bambini erano sensibili alle caratteristiche metriche degli stimoli e che le differenze individuali nell’attività neurale predicevano le prestazioni in compiti sintattici. Inoltre, i risultati hanno suggerito che i bambini con DLD potrebbero avere attività oscillatoria atipica nella banda di frequenza gamma (che, secondo gli studi in letteratura (p.es., Ding et al., 2017), è importante per l’elaborazione gerarchica). In accordo con Ladányi, Persici, et al. (in revisione), sosteniamo che l’attività oscillatoria a livello neurale possa svolgere un ruolo chiave nel supportare il processamento degli elementi di base e delle strutture gerarchiche, sia nel ritmo che nel linguaggio, e che questo supporto passi attraverso il miglioramento delle predizioni strutturali. Sosteniamo, quindi, che migliori capacità di sincronizzazione neurale si traducano in migliori capacità di predizione strutturale e che queste, a loro volta, possano influenzare positivamente l’elaborazione ritmica e linguistica. Le evidenze presentate in questo lavoro rimarcano l’importanza dello studio dell’attività oscillatoria cerebrale nei bambini piccoli e suggeriscono la possibilità di utilizzare questi paradigmi nell’infanzia per poter predire il futuro sviluppo di disturbi del linguaggio e/o della lettura. Inoltre, gli studi qui riportati sottolineano come la formazione musicale sia importante per il miglioramento dei processi di elaborazione linguistica e suggeriscono che l’uso di attività ritmiche, in particolare, possa giocare un ruolo fondamentale nel trattamento dei disturbi del linguaggio e della lettura. This work investigates prediction mechanisms and neural entrainment in children as the possible elements underlying both rhythmic and morphosyntactic processing. Both rhythmic meter and language are organized in hierarchical structures in which elements are ordered following specific rules (Fitch and Martins, 2014). Knowledge of these rules triggers compulsive expectancies regarding incoming material; these are assumed to be fundamental for efficient language and rhythmic processing and for reading (Guasti et al., 2017; Grüter, Rohde and Schafer, 2014; Miyake, Onishi and Pöppel, 2004; Persici et al., 2019). In this work we hypothesized that better hierarchical processing abilities in rhythm may transfer to the language domain, and that deficits in hierarchical processing may lead to language and/or reading disorders. To test whether abilities in making structure-based predictions correlate across domains, we investigated the abilities to infer the arrival of morphosyntactic and rhythmic material in groups of children with typical language development (TD) with or without musical training, and in participants with Developmental Dyslexia (DD). Results confirmed our hypotheses, as they showed better structure-based predictions in musician children than in non-musician TD children, and in TD children than in DD children. Results also suggested that efficiency of processing strategies improves with age. Secondly, we hypothesized that individual differences in strength of timing and content structure-based predictions may be the result of individual differences in the efficiency and precision with which brain oscillations entrain to auditory stimuli (‘neural entrainment’). To address these hypotheses, we tested the neural responses of TD children and of children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) in an experimental paradigm that was designed to elicit different metrical (hierarchical) interpretations. Results showed that all children were sensitive to hierarchical structures, and that individual differences in neural activity predicted individual differences in syntactic performance. Importantly, results also suggested that children with DLD might have atypical oscillatory activity in the gamma frequency band, which is important for hierarchical processing (Ding et al., 2017). In line with Fiveash et al. (submitted) and in Ladányi, Persici, et al. (submitted), we propose that neural oscillatory activity plays a key role in supporting the processing of both surface-level features and of syntactic structures in both musical rhythm and language, through an enhancement of structure-based prediction abilities; individual differences in neural entrainment will lead to individual differences in strength of predictions, which in turn will lead to individual differences in language and rhythm performance. The evidence presented in this work indicates that neural oscillatory activity gives an important insight into the language abilities of children and suggests that studying neural responses to rhythm in infancy may help predict the later development of language/reading disorders. Furthermore, our results suggest that musical training has positive effects on hierarchical processing, and that musical interventions centered on rhythm may enhance mechanisms of neural entrainment and timing, as well as hierarchical processing skills.

Published
2020

26. Musical rhythm perception relates to typical and atypical language development: a multi-method approach

Author

Gordon, Reyna L., Nitin, Rachana, Persici, Valentina, Yu, Leyao, Boorom, Olivia, Gustavson, Daniel, Camarata, Stephen, Devin McAuley, J., Gordon, R, Nitin, R, Persici, V, Yu, L, Boorom, O, Gustavson, D, Camarata, S, and Devin McAuley, J

Subjects
children, behavioural, electrophysiological (e.g. EEG), developmental, group study, normal population, Language
Abstract

Introduction: There is growing evidence that individual dif erences in music aptitude explain significant variance in speech-language task performance. In particular, children’s musical rhythm skills are correlated with their early literacy and spoken language (Politimou et al., 2019). Rhythm and grammar are both organized hierarchically with rule-based structure that unfolds over time. Rhythm deficits are emerging in recent studies (Ladanyi et al., in revision) as a potential feature of developmental language disorder (DLD), a prevalent communication impairment characterized by dif iculties in grammar and vocabulary. The goal of this study was to test neural and cognitive mechanisms underlying the relationship between rhythm and language ability in children across a wide range of language development. Methods: We conducted a series of experiments in children ages 5-8, in which expressive grammar, working memory, and rhythm (musical rhythm, speech rhythm, neural rhythms) were assessed. Children had non-verbal IQ in the normal range (>78) and normal hearing; language characterization was conducted under the supervision of a Speech-Language Pathologist. In Experiment 1, we examined the respective contributions of sensitivity to speech rhythm (a prosody-matching task) and auditory working memory (number recall) as mediators between musical rhythm perception and expressive grammar in typically developing (TD) children. In Experiment 2 (EEG) we tested the relationship between neural entrainment to musical rhythms and language ability in children with developmental language disorder (DLD) and TD peers. Results: Experiment 1 used a path model in TD children (N=110) to test whether speech rhythm and/or working memory mediate the association between musical rhythm and expressive grammar. Interestingly, musical rhythm had a direct ef ect on grammar (direct ef ect; β=.24), but neither speech rhythm nor working memory mediated this association (indirect ef ect; β=-.01). In Experiment 2, individual dif erences in musical rhythm processing (measured with EEG time-frequency analysis) predicted grammar (evoked beta: p=.025; evoked gamma: p =.024) in a pooled group of N=66 TD and N=16 with DLD. Moreover, within DLD, evoked gamma EEG predicted complex syntax items (p=.022), while in TD, evoked beta predicted complex syntax (p=.028), suggesting rhythm processing is linked to hierarchical language use. Discussion:These studies converged with earlier work (in smaller samples) showing musical rhythm perception skills as a predictor of individual dif erences in expressive grammar (e.g., Gordon et al., 2015) and more broadly, with a growing number of studies linking language development to musical abilities. Experiment 1 showed that most of the variance is unique to musical rhythm and not explained by sensitivity to prosodic cues or auditory working memory. Experiment 2 pointed to neural entrainment to rhythm as a potential mechanism contributing to grammatical skill in school-aged children, with EEG evoked beta and gamma as predictors of complex syntax. These findings suggest an emerging role of neural oscillatory networks linked to expressive language skills within typical and atypical development.

Published
2020

27. Processing of object clitics in Italian monolingual children

Author

Arosio, Fabrizio, Persici, Valentina, Pagliarini, Elena, Cardinaletti, A, Branchini, C: Giusti, G, Volpato, F, Arosio, F, Persici, V, and Pagliarini, E

Subjects
Clitic pronoun, Eye-tracking, Children, Italian, Language acquisition
Published
2020

28. Is atypical rhythm a risk factor for developmental speech and language disorders?

Author

Valentina Persici, Enikő Ladányi, Barbara Tillmann, Anna Fiveash, Reyna L. Gordon, Centre de recherche en neurosciences de Lyon (CRNL), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Université Jean Monnet [Saint-Étienne] (UJM)-Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Ladanyi, E, Persici, V, Fiveash, A, Tillmann, B, and Gordon, R

Subjects
Population, developmental language disorder, Specific language impairment, rhythm, 050105 experimental psychology, Article, 03 medical and health sciences, 0302 clinical medicine, Rhythm, dyslexia, medicine, Humans, 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences, education, General Psychology, ComputingMilieux_MISCELLANEOUS, education.field_of_study, Language Disorders, General Neuroscience, [SCCO.NEUR]Cognitive science/Neuroscience, 05 social sciences, Dyslexia, Infant, General Medicine, Risk factor (computing), developmental language disorder, dyslexia, rhythm, risk factor, specific language impairment, Language acquisition, medicine.disease, Language development, Variation (linguistics), Early Diagnosis, specific language impairment, risk factor, Neurodevelopmental Disorders, [SCCO.PSYC]Cognitive science/Psychology, Time Perception, 030217 neurology & neurosurgery, Music, Cognitive psychology
Abstract

Although a growing literature points to substantial variation in speech/language abilities related to individual differences in musical abilities, mainstream models of communication sciences and disorders have not yet incorporated these individual differences into childhood speech/language development. This article reviews three sources of evidence in a comprehensive body of research aligning with three main themes: (a) associations between musical rhythm and speech/language processing, (b) musical rhythm in children with developmental speech/language disorders and common comorbid attentional and motor disorders, and (c) individual differences in mechanisms underlying rhythm processing in infants and their relationship with later speech/language development. In light of converging evidence on associations between musical rhythm and speech/language processing, we propose the Atypical Rhythm Risk Hypothesis, which posits that individuals with atypical rhythm are at higher risk for developmental speech/language disorders. The hypothesis is framed within the larger epidemiological literature in which recent methodological advances allow for large-scale testing of shared underlying biology across clinically distinct disorders. A series of predictions for future work testing the Atypical Rhythm Risk Hypothesis are outlined. We suggest that if a significant body of evidence is found to support this hypothesis, we can envision new risk factor models that incorporate atypical rhythm to predict the risk of developing speech/language disorders. Given the high prevalence of speech/language disorders in the population and the negative long-term social and economic consequences of gaps in identifying children at-risk, these new lines of research could potentially positively impact access to early identification and treatment. This article is categorized under: Linguistics > Language in Mind and Brain Neuroscience > Development Linguistics > Language Acquisition.

Published
2019
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31. Lexical access and competition in bilingual children : The role of proficiency and the lexical similarity of the two languages

Author

Valentina Persici, Marilyn May Vihman, Marinella Majorano, Roberto Burro, Persici, V, Vihman, M, Burro, R, and Majorano, M

Subjects
Male, French, Italian, Lexical similarity, Multilingualism, Experimental and Cognitive Psychology, 050105 experimental psychology, False friend, German, Reaction Time, Developmental and Educational Psychology, Humans, 0501 psychology and cognitive sciences, Child, 05 social sciences, semantic relatedness, phonological relatedne, Cross-linguistic similarity, Lexical access, bilingualism, language.human_language, Linguistics, Semantics, Comprehension, Child bilingual, False friends, Word recognition, language, Female, Psychology, Child Language, 050104 developmental & child psychology
Abstract

Using a picture–auditory word recognition task, we examined how early child bilinguals access their languages and how the languages affect one another. Accuracy and response times in “false friends” (i.e., words with similar form but unrelated meanings) and semantically related words were compared with control conditions within and across languages and grades. Study 1 tested the performance of school-age children with balanced versus unbalanced knowledge of first-language (L1) Italian and second-language (L2) German. Study 2 compared unbalanced bilingual children with L1 Italian and L2 French or German to investigate the effect of lexical similarity in the children’s languages. Children were found to activate both languages on receiving an auditory stimulus; performance in each language was affected by proficiency in the other language, degree of between-language similarity, and length of experience with each language. The BLINCS (Bilingual Language Interactive Network for Comprehension of Speech) model was invoked as a plausible framework for conceptualizing the nature of bilingual phonolexical representation and its effect on word recognition.

Published
2018

34. The role of lexical and prosodic characteristics of mothers' child-directed speech for the early vocabulary development of Italian children with cochlear implants.

Author

Persici V, Castelletti G, Guerzoni L, Cuda D, and Majorano M

Subjects
Humans, Female, Child, Preschool, Male, Infant, Italy, Child Language, Mothers psychology, Cochlear Implantation, Deafness psychology, Deafness rehabilitation, Speech, Adult, Language Development, Vocabulary, Cochlear Implants psychology, Mother-Child Relations psychology
Abstract

Background: Variability in the vocabulary outcomes of children with cochlear implants (CIs) is partially explained by child-directed speech (CDS) characteristics. Yet, relatively little is known about whether and how mothers adapt their lexical and prosodic characteristics to the child's hearing status (before and after implantation, and compared with groups with normal hearing (NH)) and how important they are in affecting vocabulary development in the first 12 months of hearing experience., Aims: To investigate whether mothers of children with CIs produce CDS with similar lexical and prosodic characteristics compared with mothers of age-matched children with NH, and whether they modify these characteristics after implantation. In addition, to investigate whether mothers' CDS characteristics predict children's early vocabulary skills before and after implantation., Methods & Procedures: A total of 34 dyads (17 with NH, 17 with children with CIs; ages = 9-32 months), all acquiring Italian, were involved in the study. Mothers' and children's lexical quantity (tokens) and variety (types), mothers' prosodic characteristics (pitch range and variability), and children's vocabulary skills were assessed at two time points, corresponding to before and 1 year post-CI activation for children with CIs. Children's vocabulary skills were assessed using parent reports; lexical and prosodic characteristics were observed in semi-structured mother-child interactions., Outcomes & Results: Results showed that mothers of children with CIs produced speech with similar lexical quantity but lower lexical variety, and with increased pitch range and variability, than mothers of children with NH. Mothers generally increased their lexical quantity and variety and their pitch range between sessions. Children with CIs showed reduced expressive vocabulary and lower lexical quantity and variety than their peers 12 months post-CI activation. Mothers' prosodic characteristics did not explain variance in children's vocabulary skills; their lexical characteristics predicted children's early vocabulary and lexical outcomes, especially in the NH group, but were not related to later language development., Conclusions & Implications: Our findings confirm previous studies on other languages and support the idea that the lexical characteristics of mothers' CDS have a positive effect on children's early measures of vocabulary development across hearing groups, whereas prosodic cues play a minor role. Greater input quantity and quality may assist children in the building of basic language model representations, whereas pitch cues may mainly serve attentional and emotional processes. Results emphasize the need for additional longitudinal studies investigating the input received from other figures surrounding the child and its role for children's language development., What This Paper Adds: What is already known on the subject Mothers' CDS is thought to facilitate and support language acquisition in children with various language developmental trajectories, including children with CIs. Because children with CIs are at risk for language delays and have acoustic processing limitations, their mothers may have to produce a lexically simpler but prosodically richer input, compared to mothers of children with NH. Yet, the literature reports mixed findings and no study to our knowledge has concurrently addressed the role of mothers' lexical and prosodic characteristics for children's vocabulary development before implantation and in the first 12 months of hearing experience. What this study adds to the existing knowledge The study shows that mothers of children with CIs produce input of similar quantity but reduced variety, and with heightened pitch characteristics, compared to mothers of children with NH. There was also a general increase in mothers' lexical quantity and variety, and in their pitch range, between sessions. Only their lexical characteristics predicted children's early vocabulary skills. Their lexical variety predicted children's expressive vocabulary and lexical variety only in the NH group. What are the practical and clinical implications of this work? These findings expand our knowledge about the effects of maternal input and may contribute to the improvement of early family-centred intervention programmes for supporting language development in children with CIs., (© 2024 Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.)

Published
2024
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35. Narrative skills and language comprehension in preschool children with cochlear implants: A comparison with children with Developmental Language Disorder or typical development.

Author

Majorano M, Persici V, Santangelo M, Ferrari R, Bertelli B, Florit E, Lavelli M, Bastianello T, Guerzoni L, and Cuda D

Subjects
Humans, Child, Preschool, Female, Male, Language Tests, Language Development, Child Language, Cochlear Implants, Language Development Disorders psychology, Comprehension, Narration
Abstract

Introduction: The narrative skills of children with cochlear implants (CIs) are fragile, but the factors at play and whether these difficulties could be similar to those detected in language impairment are not clear. The present study aims to assess, at the microstructural level, narrative skills, comparing children with CIs with children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) or Typical Development (TD). Furthermore, the relationship between verbal (lexical and morphosyntactic) comprehension and narrative skills across groups is investigated., Methods: The narratives of 19 children with CIs (M age = 62.42 months, SD = 6.83), 13 children with DLD (M age = 65.38 months, SD = 4.27), and 18 preschool children with TD (M age = 63.67 months, SD = 4.31) were assessed in a standardized task. Articles, prepositions, pronouns, gender and number agreement, accuracy in the use of verbs, and number of arguments in each sentence were analysed. Lexical and morphosyntactic comprehension were also assessed. Performance was compared across groups using ANOVAs or Kruskal-Wallis tests. The role of lexical and morphosyntactic comprehension in predicting each morphological and syntactic element in the narrative task was examined using linear regressions., Results: Data analysis showed that both children with CIs and DLD had fragilities in narration, both in the morphological and syntactic components. Although some differences between children with CIs and those with DLD emerged in descriptive analyses, these were not statistically significant. Regressions showed that morphosyntactic comprehension predicted the number of pronouns produced only in the TD group., Conclusions: The scarce differences between CI and DLD groups and the absence of an effect of morphosyntactic comprehension on pronoun production may be due to their low production of these elements in the narrative task and/or to a difficulty in managing pronouns in an expressive task regardless of their ability to comprehend them. Potential implications of these results are discussed., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors have no known conflict of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Published
2024
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36. Individual differences in neural markers of beat processing relate to spoken grammar skills in six-year-old children.

Author

Persici V, Blain SD, Iversen JR, Key AP, Kotz SA, Devin McAuley J, and Gordon RL

Subjects
Humans, Child, Auditory Perception physiology, Linguistics, Electroencephalography, Language, Individuality, Music
Abstract

Based on the idea that neural entrainment establishes regular attentional fluctuations that facilitate hierarchical processing in both music and language, we hypothesized that individual differences in syntactic (grammatical) skills will be partly explained by patterns of neural responses to musical rhythm. To test this hypothesis, we recorded neural activity using electroencephalography (EEG) while children (N = 25) listened passively to rhythmic patterns that induced different beat percepts. Analysis of evoked beta and gamma activity revealed that individual differences in the magnitude of neural responses to rhythm explained variance in six-year-olds' expressive grammar abilities, beyond and complementarily to their performance in a behavioral rhythm perception task. These results reinforce the idea that mechanisms of neural beat entrainment may be a shared neural resource supporting hierarchical processing across music and language and suggest a relevant marker of the relationship between rhythm processing and grammar abilities in elementary-school-age children, previously observed only behaviorally., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Published
2023
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37. Exploring individual differences in musical rhythm and grammar skills in school-aged children with typically developing language.

Author

Nitin R, Gustavson DE, Aaron AS, Boorom OA, Bush CT, Wiens N, Vaughan C, Persici V, Blain SD, Soman U, Hambrick DZ, Camarata SM, McAuley JD, and Gordon RL

Subjects
Humans, Child, Child, Preschool, Individuality, Language, Linguistics, Memory, Short-Term, Music
Abstract

A growing number of studies have shown a connection between rhythmic processing and language skill. It has been proposed that domain-general rhythm abilities might help children to tap into the rhythm of speech (prosody), cueing them to prosodic markers of grammatical (syntactic) information during language acquisition, thus underlying the observed correlations between rhythm and language. Working memory processes common to task demands for musical rhythm discrimination and spoken language paradigms are another possible source of individual variance observed in musical rhythm and language abilities. To investigate the nature of the relationship between musical rhythm and expressive grammar skills, we adopted an individual differences approach in N = 132 elementary school-aged children ages 5-7, with typical language development, and investigated prosodic perception and working memory skills as possible mediators. Aligning with the literature, musical rhythm was correlated with expressive grammar performance (r = 0.41, p < 0.001). Moreover, musical rhythm predicted mastery of complex syntax items (r = 0.26, p = 0.003), suggesting a privileged role of hierarchical processing shared between musical rhythm processing and children's acquisition of complex syntactic structures. These relationships between rhythm and grammatical skills were not mediated by prosodic perception, working memory, or non-verbal IQ; instead, we uncovered a robust direct effect of musical rhythm perception on grammatical task performance. Future work should focus on possible biological endophenotypes and genetic influences underlying this relationship., (© 2023. The Author(s).)

Published
2023
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38. Ecological Impact of End-of-Life-Tire (ELT)-Derived Rubbers: Acute and Chronic Effects at Organism and Population Levels.

Author

Magni S, Tediosi E, Maggioni D, Sbarberi R, Noé F, Rossetti F, Fornai D, Persici V, and Neri MC

Abstract

Considering the large amount of tires that reach the end of life every year, the aim of this study was the evaluation of both acute and chronic effects of end-of-life-tire (ELT)-derived rubber granules (ELT-dg) and powder (ELT-dp) on a freshwater trophic chain represented by the green alga Pseudokirchneriella subcapitata, the crustacean Daphnia magna and the teleost Danio rerio (zebrafish). Adverse effects were evaluated at the organism and population levels through the classical ecotoxicological tests. Acute tests on D. magna and D. rerio revealed a 50% effect concentration (EC50) > 100.0 mg/L for both ELT-dg and ELT-dp. Chronic exposures had a lowest observed effect concentration (LOEC) of 100.0 mg/L for both ELT-dg and ELT-dp on P. subcapitata grow rate and yield. LOEC decreased in the other model organisms, with a value of 9.8 mg/L for D. magna, referring to the number of living offspring, exposed to ELT-dg suspension. Similarly, in D. rerio, the main results highlighted a LOEC of 10.0 mg/L regarding the survival and juvenile weight parameters for ELT-dg and a LOEC of 10.0 mg/L concerning the survival and abnormal behavior in specimens exposed to ELT-dp. Tested materials exhibited a threshold of toxicity of 9.8 mg/L, probably a non-environmental concentration, although further investigations are needed to clarify the potential ecological impact of these emerging contaminants.

Published
2022
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39. Do Acoustic Environment Characteristics Affect the Lexical Development of Children With Cochlear Implants? A Longitudinal Study Before and After Cochlear Implant Activation.

Author

Majorano M, Brondino M, Guerzoni L, Murri A, Ferrari R, Lavelli M, Cuda D, Yoshinaga-Itano C, Morelli M, and Persici V

Subjects
Acoustics, Child, Female, Humans, Language Development, Longitudinal Studies, Cochlear Implantation, Cochlear Implants, Deafness surgery, Speech Perception
Abstract

Purpose This study investigates the acoustic environment of children with cochlear implants (CIs) and the relationship between exposure to speech, in noise and in quiet, and the children's lexical production up to 1 year after CI activation, while controlling for the effect of early individual differences in receptive vocabulary growth. Method Eighteen children with CIs were observed at 3, 6, and 12 months after CI activation. Children's spontaneous word production during interaction with their mothers (types and tokens) and their expressive and receptive vocabulary size were considered. The characteristics of the acoustic environments in terms of acoustic scenes (speech in noise or in quiet, quiet, noise, music, and other) and of loudness ranges were assessed using data logging of the children's devices. Results Data analysis showed that both the number of tokens and the number of types produced 1 year after CI activation were affected by the children's exposure to speech in quiet with a loudness range between 40 and 69 dB. Expressive vocabulary size and types were affected by the receptive vocabulary knowledge that the children achieved over the first 3 months after CI activation. Conclusions Our data support the role of speech environment and individual differences in early comprehension on lexical production. The importance of exposure to speech with particular characteristics for the lexical development of children with CIs and the implications for clinical practice are discussed.

Published
2021
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40. Preverbal Production and Early Lexical Development in Children With Cochlear Implants: A Longitudinal Study Following Pre-implanted Children Until 12 Months After Cochlear Implant Activation.

Author

Majorano M, Brondino M, Morelli M, Ferrari R, Lavelli M, Guerzoni L, Cuda D, and Persici V

Abstract

Studies have shown that children vary in the trajectories of their language development after cochlear implant (CI) activation. The aim of the present study is to assess the preverbal and lexical development of a group of 20 Italian-speaking children observed longitudinally before CI activation and at three, 6 and 12 months after CI surgery (mean age at the first session: 17.5 months; SD: 8.3; and range: 10-35). The group of children with CIs (G-CI) was compared with two groups of normally-hearing (NH) children, one age-matched (G-NHA; mean age at the first session: 17.4 months; SD: 8.0; and range: 10-34) and one language-matched (G-NHL; n = 20; mean age at the first session: 11.2 months; SD: 0.4; and range: 11-12). The spontaneous interactions between children and their mothers during free-play were transcribed. Preverbal babbling production and first words were considered for each child. Data analysis showed significant differences in babbling and word production between groups, with a lower production of words in children with CIs compared to the G-NHA group and a higher production of babbling compared to the G-NHL children. Word production 1 year after activation was significantly lower for the children with CIs than for language-matched children only when maternal education was controlled for. Furthermore, latent class growth analysis showed that children with CIs belonged mainly to classes that exhibited a low level of initial production but also progressive increases over time. Babbling production had a statistically significant effect on lexical growth but not on class membership, and only for groups showing slower and constant increases. Results highlight the importance of preverbal vocal patterns for later lexical development and may support families and speech therapists in the early identification of risk and protective factors for language delay in children with CIs., (Copyright © 2020 Majorano, Brondino, Morelli, Ferrari, Lavelli, Guerzoni, Cuda and Persici.)

Published
2020
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41. Is atypical rhythm a risk factor for developmental speech and language disorders?

Author

Ladányi E, Persici V, Fiveash A, Tillmann B, and Gordon RL

Subjects
Humans, Infant, Early Diagnosis, Language Disorders diagnosis, Language Disorders epidemiology, Language Disorders physiopathology, Music, Neurodevelopmental Disorders diagnosis, Neurodevelopmental Disorders epidemiology, Neurodevelopmental Disorders physiopathology, Time Perception physiology
Abstract

Although a growing literature points to substantial variation in speech/language abilities related to individual differences in musical abilities, mainstream models of communication sciences and disorders have not yet incorporated these individual differences into childhood speech/language development. This article reviews three sources of evidence in a comprehensive body of research aligning with three main themes: (a) associations between musical rhythm and speech/language processing, (b) musical rhythm in children with developmental speech/language disorders and common comorbid attentional and motor disorders, and (c) individual differences in mechanisms underlying rhythm processing in infants and their relationship with later speech/language development. In light of converging evidence on associations between musical rhythm and speech/language processing, we propose the Atypical Rhythm Risk Hypothesis, which posits that individuals with atypical rhythm are at higher risk for developmental speech/language disorders. The hypothesis is framed within the larger epidemiological literature in which recent methodological advances allow for large-scale testing of shared underlying biology across clinically distinct disorders. A series of predictions for future work testing the Atypical Rhythm Risk Hypothesis are outlined. We suggest that if a significant body of evidence is found to support this hypothesis, we can envision new risk factor models that incorporate atypical rhythm to predict the risk of developing speech/language disorders. Given the high prevalence of speech/language disorders in the population and the negative long-term social and economic consequences of gaps in identifying children at-risk, these new lines of research could potentially positively impact access to early identification and treatment. This article is categorized under: Linguistics > Language in Mind and Brain Neuroscience > Development Linguistics > Language Acquisition., (© 2020 The Authors. WIREs Cognitive Science published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Published
2020
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42. Lexical access and competition in bilingual children: The role of proficiency and the lexical similarity of the two languages.

Author

Persici V, Vihman M, Burro R, and Majorano M

Subjects
Child, Female, Humans, Male, Reaction Time, Child Language, Comprehension, Multilingualism, Semantics
Abstract

Using a picture-auditory word recognition task, we examined how early child bilinguals access their languages and how the languages affect one another. Accuracy and response times in "false friends" (i.e., words with similar form but unrelated meanings) and semantically related words were compared with control conditions within and across languages and grades. Study 1 tested the performance of school-age children with balanced versus unbalanced knowledge of first-language (L1) Italian and second-language (L2) German. Study 2 compared unbalanced bilingual children with L1 Italian and L2 French or German to investigate the effect of lexical similarity in the children's languages. Children were found to activate both languages on receiving an auditory stimulus; performance in each language was affected by proficiency in the other language, degree of between-language similarity, and length of experience with each language. The BLINCS (Bilingual Language Interactive Network for Comprehension of Speech) model was invoked as a plausible framework for conceptualizing the nature of bilingual phonolexical representation and its effect on word recognition., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Published
2019
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