The musical meter induces cross-modal attentional effects

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event The musical meter induces cross-modal attentional effects Johanna Trost1* and D. Schön2 1 University of Geneva, Switzerland 2 Institut des Neurosciences Cognitives de la Méditérrannée, France The goal of this study was to see whether music listening affects visual perception and motor preparation via metrical/attentional entrainment. Psychological models of meter perception describe the metrical structure in terms of attentional cycles. In order to test the validity of these models, we designed an experiment wherein subjects with musical expertise listened to metrically structured music and were instructed to perform simultaneously a visual speeded-response discrimination task. The instances in time used to present visual stimuli were manipulated in such a way to co-occur with notes having different levels in the hierarchy of the musical metrical structure (going from very strong to very weak level). Reaction times (RT) and electrophysiological data (ERP) were recorded time locked to the visual stimuli. Behavioral results show that the metrical structure has an impact on reaction times to visual stimuli. Indeed, subjects responded faster to stimuli that appeared simultaneously to a strong beat in the meter than to stimuli that appeared simultaneously to a weaker position in the metrical hierarchy. Eletrophysiological data confirm and precise behavioral results showing that musical meter influences the amplitude and latency of early (N1) and late ERP components (N270) to visual stimuli. While the effects on latter component probably reflect differences due to motor preparation, the modulation of the N1 (peaking around 100 msec after stimulus onset and generate in the primary visual cortex) can be interpreted in terms of early visual discrimination differences. Overall, behavioral and electrophysiological results demonstrate that stimulus discrimination and motor response are modified as a function of the musical structure. These results give therefore evidence for cross-modal attentional effects between audition and vision. Listening to music implicitly influences our temporal orienting of attention, and this in turn affects processing of visual stimuli. Conference: 10th International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience, Bodrum, Turkey, 1 Sep - 5 Sep, 2008. Presentation Type: Poster Presentation Topic: Abstracts Citation: Trost J and Schön D (2008). The musical meter induces cross-modal attentional effects. Conference Abstract: 10th International Conference on Cognitive Neuroscience. doi: 10.3389/conf.neuro.09.2009.01.086 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 02 Dec 2008; Published Online: 02 Dec 2008. * Correspondence: Johanna Trost, University of Geneva, Lausanne 1015 Vaud, Switzerland, johanna.trost@medecine.unige.ch Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Johanna Trost D. Schön Google Johanna Trost D. Schön Google Scholar Johanna Trost D. Schön PubMed Johanna Trost D. Schön Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.