Abstract
The brain’s ability to recognize acoustic changes occurring in rapid temporal succession is important for speech and successful language development. Children with specific language impairment (SLI) are characterized by deficient dynamics of temporal information processing (TIP) in the millisecond time range accompanied by disordered language development. Furthermore, previous studies have found that intervention based on amelioration of TIP resulted in improvement of both language and other cognitive functions. This study aimed to explain the changes associated with TIP training from the perspective of event-related potentials (ERPs). Thirty-six children aged 5–8 years (26 boys, 10 girls) diagnosed with SLI underwent two types of intense audio-visual computer intervention: experimental TIP training targeted at the millisecond time range (n = 18) or control non-TIP training (n = 18). Paired 50 ms tones of 1000 Hz and 1200 Hz were presented with inter-stimulus intervals (ISIs) of either 50 ms (Short ISI Condition) or 200 ms (Long ISI Condition). Auditory ERPs were measured in a passive oddball paradigm before and after each type of training. The mismatch negativity (MMN) paradigm was applied as an electrophysiological indicator of the brain’s ability to automatically detect violations of regularity in paired tones presented in rapid succession. Moreover, the P3a component was also analyzed. After 24 sessions of temporal training (in the experimental group) MMN amplitude enhancement was observed in both ISI conditions, reflecting increased efficiency in perceiving changes in rapid auditory sequences. In both experimental and control groups, P3a amplitude was enhanced in both ISIs. This may be due to the improvement of involuntary attention shifting to the auditory events involved in each training type. To conclude, temporal training, compared to non-temporal control training, improved the ability to detect changes in a rapid auditory stream in children with SLI.
Highlights
Temporal Dynamics of Cognitive FunctionIn recent years, temporal information processing (TIP) has been emphasized as the neural basis of several mental functions, such as learning, memory, attention, decision making, motor control and speech processing (Szelag et al, 2010)
In Stage 1, we examined the components identified on the difference wave, i.e., mismatch negativity (MMN) and P3a for amplitudes
This study showed important training-related influences posttest as compared to pre-test: (1) in Experimental Group (EG) in post-test increased MMN was accompanied by enhanced N2 and N2’ amplitudes for deviants; (2) in both groups post-test, higher P3a amplitudes and shorter latencies were observed
Summary
Temporal information processing (TIP) has been emphasized as the neural basis of several mental functions, such as learning, memory, attention, decision making, motor control and speech processing (Szelag et al, 2010). Specific distortions of TIP have been found in various clinical populations (e.g., ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, depression, schizophrenia), co-existing with disordered psychological functioning; which may elucidate the consequences of deficient timing (e.g., Davalos et al, 2003; Teixeira et al, 2013; Vatakis and Allman, 2016) This line of research is important as it may foster our understanding of the ‘‘timing—behavior’’ relationship and potentially contribute to the remediation of psychological conditions. One cannot claim that certain disorders are due to time distortions per se, but deviations from the ‘‘normal’’ template seem critical to everyday functioning and, are a crucial factor for research and rehabilitation
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