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Behavioral Assessment of Hearing in 2 to 4 Year-old Children: A Two-interval, Observer-based Procedure Using Conditioned Play-based Responses
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Human Auditory-Frequency Tuning Is Sensitive to Tonal Language Experience.

Yin Liu1, Runyi Xu1, Qin Gong1,2

  • 1Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.

Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research : JSLHR
|November 5, 2020
PubMed
Summary

Native Mandarin speakers exhibit sharper auditory frequency tuning, especially at 4 kHz, compared to English speakers. This suggests tonal language experience can enhance cochlear function, demonstrating early auditory plasticity.

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Area of Science:

  • Auditory Neuroscience
  • Psychoacoustics
  • Linguistic Phonetics

Background:

  • Human auditory frequency tuning is crucial for speech perception.
  • The influence of linguistic experience on peripheral auditory processing remains an active area of research.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if experience with tonal languages enhances human auditory frequency tuning.
  • To compare auditory tuning in native speakers of tonal (Mandarin) and non-tonal (English) languages.

Main Methods:

  • Psychophysical tuning curves (PTCs) were used to measure perceptual tuning.
  • Stimulus-frequency otoacoustic emission suppression tuning curves (SFOAE-STCs) measured cochlear tuning.
  • Comparisons were made at 1 kHz and 4 kHz in 14 Mandarin and 14 English native speakers.

Main Results:

  • Mandarin speakers showed significantly sharper tuning than English speakers at 4 kHz for both PTCs (p = .046) and SFOAE-STCs (p = .007).
  • Auditory tuning was more precise at higher frequencies (4 kHz) than lower frequencies (1 kHz) (p < .001).

Conclusions:

  • Sharper auditory tuning in the 4-kHz cochlear region is linked to long-term tonal language (Mandarin) exposure.
  • Tonal language experience may induce plasticity in the peripheral auditory system, specifically the cochlea.