Differential contributions of the two cerebral hemispheres to temporal and spectral speech feedback control

Mareike Floegel,Susanne Fuchs,Christian A Kell

doi:10.1038/s41467-020-16743-2

Mareike Floegel, Susanne Fuchs + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-16743-2

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Abstract

Proper speech production requires auditory speech feedback control. Models of speech production associate this function with the right cerebral hemisphere while the left hemisphere is proposed to host speech motor programs. However, previous studies have investigated only spectral perturbations of the auditory speech feedback. Since auditory perception is known to be lateralized, with right-lateralized analysis of spectral features and left-lateralized processing of temporal features, it is unclear whether the observed right-lateralization of auditory speech feedback processing reflects a preference for speech feedback control or for spectral processing in general. Here we use a behavioral speech adaptation experiment with dichotically presented altered auditory feedback and an analogous fMRI experiment with binaurally presented altered feedback to confirm a right hemisphere preference for spectral feedback control and to reveal a left hemisphere preference for temporal feedback control during speaking. These results indicate that auditory feedback control involves both hemispheres with differential contributions along the spectro-temporal axis.

Highlights

Proper speech production requires auditory speech feedback control
The highly influential DIVA speech production model proposes that the left hemisphere is specialized in feedforward specifications of motor outputs while the right hemisphere processes auditory speech feedback to refine motor output based on external sensory information[1]
We investigated whether feedback control based on spectral and temporal speech features during speech production follows the proposed spectral/temporal distinction in functional lateralization of auditory perception

Summary

Introduction

Models of speech production associate this function with the right cerebral hemisphere while the left hemisphere is proposed to host speech motor programs. The highly influential DIVA speech production model proposes that the left hemisphere is specialized in feedforward specifications of motor outputs while the right hemisphere processes auditory speech feedback to refine motor output based on external sensory information[1]. We investigated whether feedback control based on spectral and temporal speech features during speech production follows the proposed spectral/temporal distinction in functional lateralization of auditory perception This would predict that both hemispheres contribute to auditory speech feedback control with a preference for auditory-motor processing of spectral speech features in the right and for auditory-motor processing of temporal speech features in the left hemisphere

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