The Mismatch Negativity (MMN)

Abstract

The auditory mismatch negativity (MMN) is a change-specific component of the auditory event-related brain potential (ERP) that is elicited even in the absence of attention and can be used as an objective index of sound-discrimination accuracy and auditory sensory memory. The MMN enables one to reach a new level of understanding of the brain processes forming the biological substrate of central auditory perception and the different forms of auditory memory. A review of MMN studies indicates that the central auditory system performs complex cognitive operations, such as generalization leading to simple concept formation (e.g., a rising pair irrespective of the specific frequency values), rule extraction, and the anticipation of the next stimulus at the preattentive level. These findings demonstrate the presence of a cognitive change-detection mechanism in the auditory cortex.