Speech rhythm perception and production skills in typically-developing children
Date
2024
Authors
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Publisher
University of Delaware
Abstract
Speech exhibits quasi-rhythmic regularities at multiple timescales, which seem to be crucial to comprehension. Both children’s ability to extract rhythm from complex stimuli and to produce rhythmic patterns are known to undergo changes from infancy to adulthood. However, it remains unclear what rhythm skills specifically related to speech look like as children age. Here, a cross-sectional study of rhythm skills in typically-developing children between ages 6 and 13 years was conducted to address this issue. Behavioral measures and EEG data were collected to elucidate speech rhythm production and perception at different stages of development. We show increases in entrainment to the syllabic timescale with age, as well as a reduction in variability in speech rhythm production. The results of this study add to our understanding of rhythm skills in typically-developing children and may provide a baseline for evaluating rhythm skills as a clinical marker in children at risk of speech-, language-, and neurodevelopmental disorders.
Description
Keywords
Neural entrainment, Rhythm, Speech, Stuttering, Synchrony