Improved Auditory Function Caused by Music Versus Foreign Language Training at School Age: Is There a Difference?

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Developmental Psychology
• Auditory Cognition

Background:

• Music and speech share neurocognitive functions in adults.
• The interaction of these functions in developing brains remains less understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the effects of music and foreign language training on auditory neurocognition in children.
• To investigate how these training programs influence early auditory predictive brain processes.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial with group-based music and foreign language training programs.
• Auditory event-related potentials (AEPs) recorded before and after year-long programs in 8-11-year-old children.
• Probing early auditory predictive brain processes using specific experimental paradigms.

Main Results:

• Foreign language training significantly enhanced early auditory predictive brain processes more than music training.
• Music training showed benefits in pitch encoding when probed with musically relevant paradigms.
• Both training types positively impacted auditory neurocognition, particularly pitch encoding.

Conclusions:

• Foreign language programs can foster auditory and music neurocognition in children, comparable to music programs.
• Results support a tight coupling of musical and linguistic brain functions during development.
• Early auditory predictive processing is influenced by both music and language training in children.