The emergence of cerebral specialization for the human voice over the first months of life
Lloyd-Fox, Sarah and Blasi, Anna and Mercure, Evelyne and Elwell, Clare and Johnson, Mark H. (2012) The emergence of cerebral specialization for the human voice over the first months of life. Social Neuroscience 7 (3), pp. 317-330. ISSN 1747-0919.
Abstract
How specialized is the infant brain for processing voice within our environment? Research in adults suggests that portions of the temporal lobe play an important role in differentiating vocalizations from other environmental sounds; however, very little is known about this process in infancy. Recent research in infants has revealed discrepancies in the cortical location of voice-selective activation, as well as the age of onset of this response. The current study used functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to further investigate voice processing in awake 4-7-month-old infants. In listening to voice and non-voice sounds, there was robust and widespread activation in bilateral temporal cortex. Further, voice-selective regions of the bilateral anterior temporal cortex evidenced a steady increase in voice selective activation (voice > non-voice activation) over 4-7 months of age. These findings support a growing body of evidence that the emergence of cerebral specialization for human voice sounds evolves over the first 6 months of age.
Metadata
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Keyword(s) / Subject(s): | Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), Infancy, Voice processing, Development, STS region |
| School: | Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Science > School of Psychological Sciences |
| Research Centres and Institutes: | Brain and Cognitive Development, Centre for (CBCD) |
| Depositing User: | Administrator |
| Date Deposited: | 15 Nov 2011 09:24 |
| Last Modified: | 02 Aug 2023 16:56 |
| URI: | https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/4329 |
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