A neural theory of speech acquisition and production

Abstract

This article describes a computational model, called DIVA, that provides a quantitative framework for understanding the roles of various brain regions involved in speech acquisition and production. An overview of the DIVA model is first provided, along with descriptions of the computations performed in the different brain regions represented in the model. Particular focus is given to the model's speech sound map, which provides a link between the sensory representation of a speech sound and the motor program for that sound. Neurons in this map share with "mirror neurons" described in monkey ventral premotor cortex the key property of being active during both production and perception of specific motor actions. As the DIVA model is defined both computationally and anatomically, it is ideal for generating precise predictions concerning speechrelated brain activation patterns observed during functional imaging experiments. The DIVA model thus provides a well-defined framework for guiding the interpretation of experimental results related to the putative human speech mirror system.

Multi-level processing of phonetic variants in speech production and visual word processing: evidence from Mandarin lexical tones

“…They are instantiated because, since target and distractor are unrelated at the category level, the effect must occur due to similar physical properties, that is, acoustic and/or motor-movement similarity. The idea of an instantiated internal representation is consistent with models that posit involvement of the sensori-motor system in speech production and studies showing that auditory and somatosensory feedback are utilised in guiding and adjusting speech production (Davis & Johnsrude, 2007;Guenther, Ghosh, & Tourville, 2006;Guenther & Vladusich, 2009;Houde & Jordan 1998;Jones & Munhall, 2002;Liberman & Whalen, 2000;Purcell & Munhall, 2006).…”

A Lag in Speech Motor Coordination During Sentence Production Is Associated With Stuttering Persistence in Young Children

“…However, this maturational progression is not linear; motor variability fluctuates at different points in development as a function of the rate of increasing motoric ability (Green, Moore, Higashikawa, & Steeve, 2000;Green, Moore, & Reilly, 2002;Smith & Zelaznik, 2004). These findings are consistent with dynamic systems and motor programming views of motor development, which propose that decreasing variability is a maturational trend towards increasing stability in the coordination of motoric subsystems (Thelen & Smith, 1994) through the organization of functional synergies of motor units at the periphery and the stabilization of feedforward-based motor programming circuits centrally (Guenther & Vladusich, 2012).…”

The response of the anterior striatum during adult human vocal learning

“…Novel sensorimotor mappings for the non-native words depend on the accuracy of both the sensory "templates" created for each word and the neural coding for the new sequences of motor commands (Golfinopoulos et al 2010;Guenther 2006;Guenther and Vladusich 2012). Although the most important sensory component may be auditory, somatosensation also plays a role in the control of voice production (Lametti et al 2012;Simmonds et al 2014).…”