Abstract
Purpose This study investigated whether maximum speech performance, more specifically, the ability to rapidly alternate between similar syllables during speech production, is associated with executive control abilities in a nonclinical young adult population. Method Seventy-eight young adult participants completed two speech tasks, both operationalized as maximum performance tasks, to index their articulatory control: a diadochokinetic (DDK) task with nonword and real-word syllable sequences and a tongue-twister task. Additionally, participants completed three cognitive tasks, each covering one element of executive control (a Flanker interference task to index inhibitory control, a letter-number switching task to index cognitive switching, and an operation span task to index updating of working memory). Linear mixed-effects models were fitted to investigate how well maximum speech performance measures can be predicted by elements of executive control. Results Participants' cognitive switching ability was associated with their accuracy in both the DDK and tongue-twister speech tasks. Additionally, nonword DDK accuracy was more strongly associated with executive control than real-word DDK accuracy (which has to be interpreted with caution). None of the executive control abilities related to the maximum rates at which participants performed the two speech tasks. Conclusion These results underscore the association between maximum speech performance and executive control (cognitive switching in particular).
Highlights
This study investigated whether maximum speech performance, the ability to rapidly alternate between similar syllables during speech production, is associated with executive control abilities in a nonclinical young adult population
What kind of control abilities is required from speakers to successfully produce the alternations in such “tongue-twisting” sentences? Recent clinical studies have suggested that articulatory control abilities may relate to executive control abilities (e.g., Dromey & Benson, 2003; Nijland et al, 2015)
In line with evidence that speech performance is associated with sequential memory functioning in children with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) (Nijland et al, 2015), we investigate whether updating ability relates to tongue-twister performance as speakers need to constantly update the planning and programming of the required speech movements during production
Summary
This study investigated whether maximum speech performance, the ability to rapidly alternate between similar syllables during speech production, is associated with executive control abilities in a nonclinical young adult population. Method: Seventy-eight young adult participants completed two speech tasks, both operationalized as maximum performance tasks, to index their articulatory control: a diadochokinetic (DDK) task with nonword and real-word syllable sequences and a tongue-twister task. Our study will take an individual differences approach to investigate whether executive control abilities predict the ability to rapidly alternate between similar syllables during speech production. Articulatory control in clinical settings is often quantified by various maximum performance speech tasks in the assessment of motor speech disorders (Kent et al, 1987). It is relatively simple to conduct and administer, and speakers’ performance on this task has been claimed to be a stable
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