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Temporal coordination between actions and sound during sequence production.
Peter Q Pfordresher1, Brian Benitez
1Department of Psychology and Institute for Music Research, University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA. pqp@buffalo.edu
Human Movement Science
|September 4, 2007
Summary
Delayed auditory feedback (DAF) disrupts speech and action timing. Disruption depends on feedback timing relative to actions, not just delay length, suggesting perception and action coordinate in relative time.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Auditory Perception
- Motor Control
Background:
- Delayed auditory feedback (DAF) is known to disrupt the production of sequential actions.
- The precise mechanisms by which DAF affects timing and coordination are not fully understood.
- Existing research suggests disruption may relate to absolute delay or feedback phase.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether the disruption caused by DAF is better explained by the phase location of auditory feedback or the absolute temporal separation.
- To compare the effects of constant DAF with phase-locked DAF on sequence production.
- To examine how different movement tasks influence the perception-action timing relationship under DAF.
Main Methods:
- Two experiments were conducted using isochronous melody playing and isochronous tapping tasks.
- Participants performed tasks at three different production rates.
- Constant DAF and phase-adjusted DAF conditions were compared.
Main Results:
- Disruption from DAF was most accurately predicted by the phase location of feedback onsets within the inter-response interval.
- Disruption decreased when feedback onsets aligned with harmonic phase ratios (phase synchrony).
- Both constant and phase-adjusted DAF produced similar disruption patterns, with minor task-specific differences.
Conclusions:
- Perception and action are primarily coordinated in relative time, not absolute time.
- The phase relationship between auditory feedback and motor output is a critical factor in DAF-induced disruption.
- Findings support a model where timing is regulated by the relative phase between sensory feedback and motor commands.
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