The Development of Sound Localization Latency in Infants and Young Children with Normal Hearing
Martin Eklöf1,2, Filip Asp1,2, Erik Berninger1,3
1Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, 27106Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Trends in Hearing
|May 4, 2022
Summary
Sound localization latency, measured by eye movements, significantly decreases with age in young children. This developmental trend in auditory-visual responses suggests latency is a key indicator of auditory development.
Area of Science:
- Auditory Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Ophthalmology
Background:
- Saccadic reflexes to auditory stimuli are accessible behavioral measures.
- Understanding auditory development in infants and children is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate the development of horizontal sound localization latency (SLL) in normally hearing young children.
- Quantify SLL using saccadic eye movements in response to auditory stimuli.
- Determine the relationship between SLL, age, and sound localization accuracy.
Main Methods:
- Utilized eye tracking to measure saccadic reflexes in response to auditory stimuli.
- Presented auditory-only localization cues to 22 children aged 0.55 to 5.6 years.
- Fitted a sigmoid model to gaze data and calculated SLL, averaging valid trials.
Main Results:
- SLL was successfully assessed in 21 children, ranging from 400 to 1400 ms (mean 860 ms).
- A strong inverse relationship was found between SLL and age (R² = 0.79, p < 0.001), indicating decreasing latency with age.
- No significant correlation between SLL and sound localization accuracy was observed when controlling for age (p = 0.5).
Conclusions:
- Sound localization latency shows significant development in early childhood, decreasing markedly with age.
- SLL, measured via saccadic reflexes, may offer diagnostic value for auditory development beyond localization accuracy alone.
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