A Protracted Sensitive Period Regulates the Development of Cross-Modal Sound–Shape Associations in Humans

Sourav, Suddha; Kekunnaya, Ramesh; Shareef, Idris; Banerjee, Seema; Bottari, Davide; Röder, Brigitte

doi:10.1177/0956797619866625

Cited by 27 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 36 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…For instance, if the sound symbolic words are associated with object shape and size, then the processing of these words can involve the neural substrates that associate the sound with the sensory processing of object shape and size. This idea is supported by findings which showed that congenitally blind individuals show weaker sound-shape associations 9 – 11 and a study that found that prelingual auditory deprivation reduced the bouba–kiki effect, although they performed above chance level 12 . These findings raise the possibility that the processing of sound symbolic words associated with object properties involves sensory-modality dependent brain networks.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Brain networks underlying the processing of sound symbolism related to softness perception

Kitada

Kwon

Doizaki

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Unlike the assumption of modern linguistics, there is non-arbitrary association between sound and meaning in sound symbolic words. Neuroimaging studies have suggested the unique contribution of the superior temporal sulcus to the processing of sound symbolism. However, because these findings are limited to the mapping between sound symbolism and visually presented objects, the processing of sound symbolic information may also involve the sensory-modality dependent mechanisms. Here, we conducted a functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment to test whether the brain regions engaged in the tactile processing of object properties are also involved in mapping sound symbolic information with tactually perceived object properties. Thirty-two healthy subjects conducted a matching task in which they judged the congruency between softness perceived by touch and softness associated with sound symbolic words. Congruency effect was observed in the orbitofrontal cortex, inferior frontal gyrus, insula, medial superior frontal gyrus, cingulate gyrus, and cerebellum. This effect in the insula and medial superior frontal gyri was overlapped with softness-related activity that was separately measured in the same subjects in the tactile experiment. These results indicate that the insula and medial superior frontal gyrus play a role in processing sound symbolic information and relating it to the tactile softness information.

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 61%

Brain networks underlying the processing of sound symbolism related to softness perception

Kitada

Kwon

Doizaki

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…However, sound-shape associations seem to entail a rather protracted sensitive period (Sourav et al, 2019).…”

Section: Which Neurophysiological Mechanisms Could Explain the Crossmmentioning

confidence: 96%

Auditory features modelling reveals sound envelope representation in striate cortex

Handjaras

Betta

Leo

et al. 2020

Preprint

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Primary visual cortex is no longer considered exclusively visual in its function. Proofs that its activity plays a role in multisensory processes have accrued. Here we provide evidence that, in absence of retinal input, V1 maps sound envelope information. We modeled amplitude changes occurring at typical speech envelope timescales of four hierarchically-organized categories of natural (or synthetically derived) sounds. Using functional magnetic resonance, we assessed whether sound amplitude variations were represented in striate cortex and, as a control, in the temporal cortex. Sound amplitude mapping in V1 occurred regardless of the semantic content, was dissociated from the spectral properties of sounds and was not restricted to speech material. As in the temporal cortex, a spatially organized representation of amplitude modulation frequencies emerged in V1. Our results demonstrate that human striate cortex is a locus of representation of sound attributes.

show abstract

“…There is also evidence that the ability of children to acquire iconic form–meaning associations has its own developmental trajectory, with a possibly protracted sensitive period ( Sourav et al, 2019 ) and with older children more sensitive to iconicity than young children. This is the case both for the artificial word stimuli typical of sound symbolism studies and for existing iconic words from unfamiliar languages ( Tzeng et al, 2017 ).…”

Section: Challenges and Opportunitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Iconicity in Word Learning and Beyond: A Critical Review

Nielsen

Dingemanse²

2020

Lang Speech

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Interest in iconicity (the resemblance-based mapping between aspects of form and meaning ) is in the midst of a resurgence, and a prominent focus in the field has been the possible role of iconicity in language learning. Here we critically review theory and empirical findings in this domain. We distinguish local learning enhancement (where the iconicity of certain lexical items influences the learning of those items) and general learning enhancement (where the iconicity of certain lexical items influences the later learning of non-iconic items or systems). We find that evidence for local learning enhancement is quite strong, though not as clear cut as it is often described and based on a limited sample of languages. Despite common claims about broader facilitatory effects of iconicity on learning, we find that current evidence for general learning enhancement is lacking. We suggest a number of productive avenues for future research and specify what types of evidence would be required to show a role for iconicity in general learning enhancement. We also review evidence for functions of iconicity beyond word learning: iconicity enhances comprehension by providing complementary representations, supports communication about sensory imagery, and expresses affective meanings. Even if learning benefits may be modest or cross-linguistically varied, on balance, iconicity emerges as a vital aspect of language.

show abstract

A Protracted Sensitive Period Regulates the Development of Cross-Modal Sound–Shape Associations in Humans

Cited by 27 publications

References 36 publications

Brain networks underlying the processing of sound symbolism related to softness perception

Brain networks underlying the processing of sound symbolism related to softness perception

Auditory features modelling reveals sound envelope representation in striate cortex

Iconicity in Word Learning and Beyond: A Critical Review

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About