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Relation Between Musicianship and Speech Perception: The Mediating Roles of Auditory Sensitivity and Executive
Jiaqing Zu1,2, William Choi1,2,3
1Academic Unit of Human Communication, Learning, and Development, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology (2006)
|November 24, 2025
Summary
Musicians have better speech perception, but why? This study found that enhanced auditory sensitivity, not executive function, explains why musicians excel at understanding speech. This highlights the importance of auditory processing skills.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Auditory Perception
- Human Behavior
Background:
- Musicians frequently demonstrate superior speech perception compared to non-musicians.
- The precise neural and cognitive mechanisms driving this musicianship advantage remain unclear.
- Understanding these mechanisms is crucial for fields like audiology and education.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mediating roles of auditory sensitivity and executive function in the relationship between musicianship and speech perception.
- To elucidate the specific pathways through which musical training influences auditory processing.
- To provide empirical evidence for cognitive theories of auditory plasticity.
Main Methods:
- Recruited 136 Cantonese-speaking adults for the study.
- Assessed participants' level of musicianship through standardized tests.
- Measured auditory sensitivity, executive functions, and speech perception abilities using a battery of cognitive and perceptual tasks.
Main Results:
- Auditory sensitivity was found to significantly mediate the relationship between musicianship and speech perception.
- Executive function did not emerge as a significant mediator in this association.
- These findings suggest a direct link between enhanced auditory processing and improved speech perception in musicians.
Conclusions:
- Auditory sensitivity is a key factor explaining the speech perception benefits observed in musicians.
- Executive functions do not appear to play a significant mediating role in this specific context.
- The results underscore the importance of auditory training and its impact on cognitive functions related to speech processing.
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