Publications

Abstract

* = Joint first authorship

Abstract

Listeners vary in the perception and interpretation of speech prosody (the variations in intonation, loudness, and rhythm of spoken language). The source of this variability is unknown. We investigated whether the ability to recognise and classify prosodic structure is related to working memory (WM) capacity. This hypothesis stems from the tight connection between prosodic and syntactic (grammatical) structure, while processing syntax is known to relate to WN capacity. Healthy adult speakers of Dutch judged prosodic structures in a gating paradigm. The phrases contained early and late intonational cues that signalled whether the phrases contained an internal grouping or not. Listeners also took part in WM (digit span) and processing speed (letter comparison) tasks. There was an interaction between performance in the prosody judgement and WM tasks: high-WM listeners were better at classifying prosodic structure and required less prosodic information to detect the correct structure. The results demonstrate a close relationship between prosody processing and WM abilities, implying that WM is an important component of prosody processing.

Abstract

SATB2-associated syndrome is an autosomal dominant neurodevelopmental syndrome caused by genetic alterations in the transcription factor SATB2. The associated phenotype is variable, and genotype-phenotype correlation studies have not yet been able to explain differences in severity and symptoms across affected individuals. While haploinsufficiency is the most often described disease mechanism, with the majority of variants consisting of whole- or partial-gene deletions and protein truncating variants with predicted loss-of-function, approximately one-third of affected individuals carry a SATB2 missense variant with an unknown effect. In this study, we sought to functionally characterize these missense variants to uncover associated pathogenic mechanisms. We combined a set of human cell-based experiments to screen 31 etiological SATB2 missense variants for effects on nuclear localization, global chromatin binding, and transcriptional activity. Our data indicate partial loss-of-function effects for most of the studied missense variants, but identify at least eight variants with increased SATB2 function showing a combination (or subset) of features that include stronger co-localization with DNA, decreased nuclear protein mobility suggesting increased overall chromatin binding, and maintained or increased transcriptional activity. These results demonstrate that phenotypes associated with variants in SATB2 may have distinct underlying disease mechanisms, and the data could provide a resource for future studies investigating disease variability and potential therapies for this condition.

Abstract

Developmental stuttering is a common childhood condition characterized by disfluencies in speech, such as blocks, prolongations, and repetitions. While most children who stutter do so only transiently, there are some for whom stuttering persists into adulthood. Rare-variant screens in families including multiple relatives with persistent stuttering have so far identified six genes carrying putative pathogenic variants hypothesized to act in a monogenic fashion. Here, we applied a complementary study design, searching instead for de novo variants in exomes of 85 independent parent-child trios, each with a child with transient or persistent stuttering. Exome sequencing analysis yielded a pathogenic variant in SPTBN1 as well as likely pathogenic variants in PRPF8, TRIO, and ZBTB7A - four genes previously implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders with or without speech problems. Our results also highlighted two further genes of interest for stuttering: FLT3 and IREB2. We used extensive bioinformatic approaches to investigate overlaps in brain-related processes among the twelve genes associated with monogenic forms of stuttering. Analyses of gene-expression datasets of the developing and adult human brain, and data from a genome-wide association study of human brain structural connectivity, did not find links of monogenic stuttering to specific brain processes. Overall, our results provide the first direct genetic link between stuttering and other neurodevelopmental disorders, including speech delay and aphasia. In addition, we systematically demonstrate a dissimilarity in biological pathways associated with the genes thus far implicated in monogenic forms of stuttering, indicating heterogeneity in the etiological basis of this condition.

Abstract

Children’s exposure to language is shaped by interactional needs in conversation. Prior research has largely focused on how such language influences word learning and long-term lexical knowledge. However, the effects of interactional language are likely to go far beyond word learning. Earlier studies showed that in conversation, from around age 2;6 children who are watching a conversation are more likely to spontaneously switch their gaze to an upcoming responder when they hear a question compared to when they hear a non-question. However, what information drives these predictions remains unclear. Tracking the eye gaze behavior of Dutch children (1–4-year-olds) and adults, the purpose of this research was to examine whether participant’s predictions are driven by individually informative linguistic cues, comparing two cues associated with interrogatives: one lexical cue (subject pronoun) and one canonically associated prosodic cue (utterance-final intonation). We find that from age children 2;0 make more and earlier anticipations of an upcoming addressee response when hearing the early lexical cue (you vs. I subject pronouns), but we have no evidence that their predictions are changed by the later prosodic cue. Further, we investigated how cue use depends on linguistic context by comparing semantically meaningful (Study 1) and non-meaningful (Study 2) context. Only in meaningful contexts did participants show a pronoun advantage in predicting conversational structure. This suggests that using these cues relies on broader linguistic context. The findings take us a step closer to understanding how linguistic and interactional skills become intertwined in development.

Abstract

Dyslexia is a specific difficulty in learning to read that affects 5–10% of school-aged children and is strongly influenced by genetic factors. While previous studies have identified common genetic variants associated with dyslexia, the role of rare variants has only recently begun to emerge from pedigree studies and has yet to be systematically tested in larger cohorts. Here, we present a whole-exome sequencing (WES) study of 53 individuals with dyslexia, followed by an analysis in 38 cases with reading difficulties and 82 controls assessed with reading measures. Of the 22 genes that had high-impact variants filtered through stringent bioinformatic approaches in at least three dyslexia cases, five genes were validated in the follow-up analysis: CACNA1D, CACNA1G, CLDN3, CNGB1, and CP. Notably, a specific variant (7-73769649-G-A; c.C401T; p.P134L) in the CLDN3 gene was identified in six independent cases, showing a four-fold higher frequency compared to population reference datasets. CACNA1D and CACNA1G encode subunits of voltage-gated calcium channels expressed in neurons, and variants in both genes have been implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and epilepsy. Segregation analyses in available family members were consistent with patterns of dominant inheritance with variable expressivity. In total, high-impact variants in the five genes of interest were found in 26% (N = 14) of individuals of the discovery cohort. Overall, our findings support the involvement of rare variants in developmental dyslexia and indicate that larger WES studies may uncover additional associated genes.

Abstract

All languages in the world have demonstrative terms such as ‘this’ and ‘that’ in English, which have traditionally been treated as spatial words. Here we aim to provide experimental evidence that demonstrative choice is jointly determined by spatial considerations (e.g., whether the referent is near or far) and socio-cognitive factors (e.g.,the listener’s attention focus). We also test whether demonstrative choice varies depending on the speaker’s use of pointing, to provide evidence for a multimodal account of demonstrative systems. We focus on the Turkish system and compare it with the Spanish one to better understand the cross-linguistic variability of 3-term demonstrative systems. Corpus studies have suggested that the Turkish proximal ‘bu’ and distal ‘o’ mark a spatial contrast between near and far space, whereas the medial ‘s¸u’ is used to direct the listener’s attention to a new referent. Supporting this analysis, an online experiment using a picture-based demonstrative-choice task revealed that the medial form ‘s¸u’ was preferred when the listener was looking at the wrong object. The results of a second experiment using video stimuli further showed that the medial ‘s¸u’ was preferred when the speaker pointed to the referent to direct the listener’s attention, whereas the proximal demonstrative was used in near space and the distal in far space, mostly in joint attention and without pointing. The results of a third experiment in Spanish showed radically different patterns of demonstrative-pointing use. The medial ‘ese’ was preferred in joint attention, whereas the proximal ‘este’ and distal ‘aquel’ were selected to direct the listener’s attention towards the intended referent but without an effect of pointing. Our results confirm that demonstrative choice within a given system is determined by both spatial and socio-cognitive factors, interacting with pointing patterns and varying across languages. Leveraging recent experimental work in several languages, we interpret these findings as further evidence for the weighted parameters framework (e.g., referent position and listener attention), which explains demonstrative choice beyond previous categorical analyses.

Abstract

Background

Facial emotion processing deficits and atypical eye gaze are often described in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and those with conduct disorder (CD) and high callous unemotional (CU) traits. Yet, the underlying neural mechanisms of these deficits are still unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate if eye gaze can partially account for the differences in brain activation in youth with ASD, with CD, and typically developing youth (TD).

Methods

In total, 105 adolescent participants (NCD = 39, NASD = 27, NTD = 39; mean age = 15.59 years) underwent a brain functional imaging session including eye tracking during an implicit emotion processing task while parents/caregivers completed questionnaires. Group differences in gaze behavior (number of fixations to the eye and mouth regions) for different facial expressions (neutral, fearful, angry) presented in the task were investigated using Bayesian analyses. Full-factorial models were used to investigate group differences in brain activation with and without including gaze behavior parameters and focusing on brain regions underlying facial emotion processing (insula, amygdala, and medial prefrontal cortex).

Results

Youth with ASD showed increased fixations on the mouth compared to TD and CD groups. CD participants with high CU traits tended to show fewer fixations to the eye region compared to TD for all emotions. Brain imaging results show higher right anterior insula activation in the ASD compared with the CD group when angry faces were presented. The inclusion of gaze behavior parameters in the model reduced the size of that cluster.

Conclusions

Differences in insula activation may be partially explained by gaze behavior. This implies an important role of gaze behavior in facial emotion processing, which should be considered for future brain imaging studies. In addition, our results suggest that targeting gaze behavior in interventions might be potentially beneficial for disorders showing impairments associated with the processing of emotional faces. The relation between eye gaze, CU traits, and neural function in different diagnoses needs further clarification in larger samples.

Abstract

Background

Mastering gross motor abilities in early infancy and culturally defined actions (e.g. self-care routines) in late infancy can initiate cascading developmental changes that affect language learning. Here, we adopt a genetic perspective to investigate underlying processes, implicating either shared or “gateway” mechanisms, where the latter enable children to interact with their environment.
Methods

Selecting heritable traits (h2, heritability), we studied infant gross motor (6 months) and self-care/symbolic (15 months) skills as predictors of 10 language outcomes (15–38 months) in genotyped children from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (N ≤ 7,017). Language measures were combined into three interrelated language factors (LF) using structural equation modeling (SEM), corresponding to largely different age windows (LF15M, LF24M, LF38M, 51.3% total explained variance). Developmental genomic and non-genomic relationships across measures were dissected with Cholesky decompositions using genetic-relationship-matrix structural equation modeling (GRM-SEM) as part of a multivariate approach.
Results

Gross motor abilities at 6 months (h2 = 0.18 (SE = .06)) and self-care/symbolic actions at 15 months (h2 = 0.18 (SE = .06)) were modestly heritable, as well as the three derived language factor scores (LFS15M-h2 = 0.12 (SE = .05), LFS24M-h2 = 0.21 (SE = .06), LFS38M-h2 = 0.17 (SE = .05)), enabling genetic analyses. Developmental genetic models (GRM-SEM) showed that gross motor abilities (6 months) share genetic influences with self-care/symbolic actions (15 months, factor loading λ; λ = 0.22 (SE = .09)), but not with language performance (p ≥ .05). In contrast, genetic influences underlying self-care/symbolic actions, independent of early gross motor skills, were related to all three language factors (LFS15M-λ = 0.26 (SE = .09), LFS24M-λ = 0.28 (SE = .10), LFS38M-λ = 0.30 (SE = .10)). Multivariate models studying individual language outcomes provided consistent results, both for genomic and non-genomic influences.
Conclusions

Genetically encoded processes linking gross motor behaviour in young infants to self-care/symbolic actions in older infants are different from those linking self-care/symbolic actions to emerging language abilities. These findings are consistent with a developmental cascade where motor control enables children to engage in novel social interactions, but children's social learning abilities foster language development.

Abstract

Rhythm and language-related traits are phenotypically correlated, but their genetic overlap is largely unknown. Here, we leveraged two large-scale genome-wide association studies performed to shed light on the shared genetics of rhythm (N=606,825) and dyslexia (N=1,138,870). Our results reveal an intricate shared genetic and neurobiological architecture, and lay groundwork for resolving longstanding debates about the potential co-evolution of human language and musical traits.

Abstract

Introduction

Children's early language and communication skills are efficiently measured using parent report, for example, communicative development inventories (CDIs). These have scalable potential to determine risk of later language delay, and associations between delay and risk factors such as prematurity and poverty. However, there may be measurement difficulties in parent reports, including anomalous directions of association between child age/socioeconomic status and reported language. Findings vary on whether parents may report older infants as having smaller vocabularies than younger infants, for example.

Methods

We analysed data from the UK Communicative Development Inventory (Words and Gestures); UK-CDI (W&G) to determine whether anomalous associations would be replicated in this population, and/or with gesture. In total 1204 families of children aged 8–18 months (598 girls, matched to UK population for income, parental education and ethnicity as far as possible) completed Vocabulary and Gesture scales of the UK-CDI (W&G).

Results

Overall scores on the Gesture scale showed more significant relationships with biological risk factors including prematurity than did Vocabulary scores. Gesture also showed more straightforward relationships with social risk factors including income. Relationships between vocabulary and social risk factors were less straightforward; some at-risk groups reported higher vocabulary scores than other groups.

Discussion

We conclude that vocabulary report may be less accurate than gesture for this age. Parents have greater knowledge of language than gesture milestones, hence may report expectations for vocabulary, not observed vocabulary. We also conclude that gesture should be included in early language scales partly because of its greater, more straightforward association with many risk factors for language delay.

Abstract

Prediction in language is often about objects in the language users’ visual surroundings. Previous research suggests that linguistic working memory limitations in such task environments constrain language-mediated anticipatory eye movements. In this study, we investigated the effects of visuospatial cognitive load on language-mediated predictive eye gaze behaviour in a diverse group of L2 English speakers using the visual-world paradigm. Participants completed three levels of an increasingly difficult visuospatial working memory task before hearing either semantically constraining or unconstraining sentences, choosing an object best fitting the sentence, and completing the working memory task. Evidence of L2 anticipatory eye gaze was observed in all conditions. Importantly, a significant effect of difficulty, especially in the higher-load condition, suggests that increasing visuospatial working memory reduces anticipatory eye gaze. We close by discussing the importance of (visual) working memory in visual world studies and highlight the inherently integrative nature of predictive processing during language-vision interactions.

Abstract

Semantic knowledge is a defining property of human cognition, profoundly influenced by cultural experiences. In this study, we investigated whether literacy enhances lexical-semantic processing independently of schooling. Three groups of neurotypical adults - unschooled illiterates, unschooled ex-illiterates, and schooled literates - from the same residential and socioeconomic background in Portugal were tested on serial rapid automatized naming (RAN) and on discrete naming of everyday objects (concrete concepts) and basic color patches (abstract concepts). The performance of readers, whether schooled literate or unschooled exilliterate, was not affected by stimulus category, whereas illiterates were much slower on color than object naming, irrespective of task. This naming advantage promoted by literacy was not significantly mediated by vocabulary size. We conclude that literacy per se, regardless of schooling, contributes to faster naming of depicted concepts, particularly those of more abstract categories. Our findings provide further evidence that literacy influences cognition beyond the mere accumulation of knowledge: Literacy enhances the quality and efficiency of lexical-semantic representations and processing.

Abstract

Following Ariel (2021. Why it’s hard to construct ad hoc number concepts. In Caterina Mauri, Ilaria Fiorentini, & Eugenio Goria (eds.), Building categories in interaction: Linguistic resources at work, 439–462. Amsterdam: John Benjamins), we argue that number words manifest distinct distributional patterns from open-class lexical items. When modified, open-class words typically take selectors (as in kinda table), which select a subset of their potential denotations (e.g., “nonprototypical table”). They are typically not modified by loosening operators (e.g., approximately), since even if bare, typical lexemes can broaden their interpretation (e.g., table referring to a rock used as a table). Number words, on the other hand, have a single, precise meaning and denotation and cannot take a selector, which would need to select a subset of their (single) denotation (??kinda seven). However, they are often overtly broadened (approximately seven), creating a range of values around N. First, we extend Ariel’s empirical examination to the larger COCA and to Hebrew (HeTenTen). Second, we propose that open-class and number words belong to sparse versus dense lexical domains, respectively, because the former exhibit prototypicality effects, but the latter do not. Third, we further support the contrast between sparse and dense domains by reference to: synchronic word2vec models of sparse and dense lexemes, which testify to their differential distributions, numeral use in noncounting communities, and different renewal rates for the two lexical types.

Abstract

Explaining the origins of language is a key challenge in understanding ourselves as a species. We present an empirical framework that draws on synergies across fields to facilitate robust studies of language evolution. The approach is multifaceted, seeing language emergence as dependent on the convergence of multiple capacities, each with their own evolutionary trajectories. It is explicitly biocultural, recognizing and incorporating the importance of both biological preparedness and cultural transmission as well as interactions between them. We demonstrate this approach through three case studies that examine the evolution of different facets involved in human language (vocal production learning, linguistic structure, and social underpinnings).

Abstract

Children's emotional development is linked to language development for typically developing children and deaf children with native sign language exposure. However, approximately 90% of deaf children are born to hearing parents who are not familiar with sign language. These deaf children begin learning a sign language when they attend a school for the deaf. Late sign language exposure has negative consequences on several aspects of language development. We investigate whether acquiring sign language late affects children's emotion recall and channel of emotion expression. After watching a silent video depicting emotions, late- and native-signing deaf children retold the story in Turkish Sign Language. Results showed that late signers recalled fewer emotions and used fewer signs and facial expressions compared to native signers. Manual gestures (non-sign hand movements), head and body movements did not differ across groups. The findings suggest that late sign language acquisition negatively impacts deaf children's ability to recall and express emotions, highlighting the importance of early language exposure for the development of emotion recall.

Abstract

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are commonly prescribed to pregnant women due to their efficacy and safety profile, leading to potential exposure of the developing fetus and infant. Serotonin, which acts as a neurotransmitter in adults and is crucial for regulating male sexual behavior, also serves as a neurotrophic factor during early brain development. Yet, the long-term consequences of perinatal SSRI exposure on adult sexual functioning remain poorly understood. This study investigates the long-term effects of perinatal SSRI exposure on the sexual behavior of adult male rats in a seminatural environment. During pregnancy and lactating, mother rats were administered either fluoxetine (FLX, 10 mg/kg) or a control solution (CTR, 1 % Methylcellulose) daily via oral gavage. Upon reaching adulthood, male offspring were assessed for sexual performance in a semi-natural setting, where they lived in mixed-sex groups for eight days. Comprehensive observations of sexual, social, and conflict behaviors were scoring from the first to the last copulatory behavior during the period in which female rats were sexually receptive. Our findings reveal that perinatal FLX exposure significantly increases sexual behavior in adult male rats, as evidenced by a higher total number of copulatory behaviors. This suggests that elevated serotonin levels during early development have enduring consequences for male rat sexual behavior in adulthood, potentially enhancing reproductive strategies and success in naturalistic environments.

Abstract

Thematic roles in language (Agents, Patients) are considered to be hierarchically organized in terms of their salience, and this hierarchy is rooted in their counterparts as event participants in cognition. Here, we examine the relative salience of Agents over Patients in two-participant causative events in Turkish-speaking 3- to 5-year-old children. We also test if this asymmetry is modulated by the animacy of the Patient (human vs. inanimate object) and specific to the presence of a coherent event. In an eye-tracked change detection task, changes to Agents were detected more accurately (and after fewer fixations) than changes to inanimate Patients when there was a coherent event. This asymmetry disappeared when the Patient was animate (for accuracy) and when event coherence was disrupted (for both accuracy and fixations). These findings suggest an interplay of event roles and animacy in Agent preference.

Abstract

Many people have flipped coins but few have stopped to ponder the statistical and physical intricacies of the process. We collected 350,757 coin flips to test the counterintuitive prediction from a physics model of human coin tossing developed by Diaconis, Holmes, and Montgomery (DHM; 2007). The model asserts that when people flip an ordinary coin, it tends to land on the same side it started. Our data support this prediction: the coins landed on the same side more often than not, Pr⁡(same side)=0.508, 95% credible interval (CI) [0.506, 0.509], BFsame‐side bias=2359. Furthermore, the data revealed considerable between-people variation in the degree of this same-side bias. Our data also confirmed the generic prediction that when people flip an ordinary coin—with the initial side-up randomly determined—it is equally likely to land heads or tails:Pr⁡(heads)=0.500, 95% CI [0.498, 0.502], BFheads‐tails bias=0.182. Additional analyses revealed that the within-people same-side bias decreased as more coins were flipped, an effect that is consistent with the possibility that practice makes people flip coins in a less wobbly fashion. Our data therefore provide strong evidence that when some (but not all) people flip a fair coin, it tends to land on the same side it started. Supplementary materials for this article are available online, including a standardized description of the materials available for reproducing the work.

Abstract

There is an increasing trend towards evaluating NLP models with LLMs instead of human judgments, raising questions about the validity of these evaluations, as well as their reproducibility in the case of proprietary models. We provide JUDGE-BENCH, an extensible collection of 20 NLP datasets with human annotations covering a broad range of evaluated properties and types of data, and comprehensively evaluate 11 current LLMs, covering both open-weight and proprietary models, for their ability to replicate the annotations. Our evaluations show substantial variance across models and datasets. Models are reliable evaluators on some tasks, but overall display substantial variability depending on the property being evaluated, the expertise level of the human judges, and whether the language is human or model-generated. We conclude that LLMs should be carefully validated against human judgments before being used as evaluators.

Abstract

Humans acquire word knowledge through producing and comprehending spoken and written language. Word learning continues into adulthood and knowledge accumulates across the lifespan. Therefore, receptive vocabulary size is often conceived of as a proxy for linguistic experience and plays a central role in assessing individuals’ language proficiency. There is currently no valid open access test available for assessing receptive vocabulary size in German-speaking adults. We addressed this gap and developed the German Auditory and Image Vocabulary Test (GAudI). In the GAudI, participants are presented with spoken test words and have to indicate their meanings by selecting the corresponding picture from a set of four alternatives. Here we describe the development of the test and provide evidence for its validity. Specifically, we report a study in which 168 German-speaking participants completed the GAudI and five other tests tapping into linguistic experience: one test measuring print exposure, two tests measuring productive vocabulary, one test assessing knowledge of book language grammar, and a test of receptive vocabulary that was normed in adolescents. The psychometric properties of the GAudI and its relationships to the other tests demonstrate that it is a suitable tool for measuring receptive vocabulary size. We offer an open-access digital test environment that can be used for research purposes, accessible via https://ems13.mpi.nl/bq4_customizable_de/researchers_welcome.php.

Abstract

Individuals vary substantially in their language skills. The Individual Differences in Language Skills Test Battery (IDLaS) is a tool to assess variability in (1) linguistic experience, (2) general cognitive skills implicated in language, including nonverbal processing speed, working memory, and nonverbal reasoning, and (3) linguistic processing skills, including word- and sentence-level production and comprehension. The test battery was initially developed for Dutch language users. Building on this work, we recently developed a German version (IDLaS-DE). IDLaS-DE consists of 30 behavioral tests that have been validated in a large group of German speakers, aged between 18 and 30 years. In addition, we have developed a web platform that researchers interested in assessing language and general cognitive skills can use for their research purposes. Here, we provide a guide for creating and running customized studies online via this platform. The IDLaS-DE web platform and all its services are free of charge and accessible at https://www.mpi.nl/idlas-de.

Abstract

This chapter explores the fundamentals and recent advancements of diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) and its primary application, tractography. Both have become indispensable in the research arena and are currently being integrated into the clinical world, especially for neurosurgery. These technologies provide rapid, in vivo mapping of white matter tracts, greatly assisting surgeons in pre-surgical planning and enabling them to offer patients more precise prognostic information, thereby enhancing the process of informed decision-making. Despite nearly three decades of use in research and the development of sophisticated mapping techniques, the adoption of contemporary tractography methods in clinical settings has been slow. Here, we aim to provide a comprehensive understanding of DWI’s basic principles, shed light on advanced methodologies that surpass the traditional diffusion tensor model, and discuss the clinical integration of tractography. Our objective is to advocate for incorporating newer tractography techniques into standard clinical practice.

Abstract

Literacy is a significant predictor of important life outcomes, such as attained education and income (Ritchie and Bates in Psychol Sci 24(7):1301–1308, 2013. 10.1177/0956797612466268) yet difficulties in reading and spelling are common. Both genetic and environmental factors account for individual differences in reading and spelling abilities (Little et al. in Behav Genet 47:52–76, 2017. 10.1007/s10519-016-9810-6), but there is some evidence that genetic factors can be moderated by environmental factors, many of which relate to differences in socio-economic status (SES). Studies in the US indicate that the heritability of reading and spelling abilities is higher in higher SES environments (Hart et al. in J Child Psychol Psychiatry 54(10):1047–1055, 2013. 10.1111/jcpp.12083; Friend et al. in Psychol Sci 19(11), 2008. 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2008.02213.x). Because countries differ in terms of factors such as education access and social mobility, the genetics (or simply gene) x SES interaction may or may not be present in other populations. Here, we utilise summary statistics from a well-powered genome-wide association study on dyslexia (Doust et al. in Nat Genet 54:1621–1629, 2022. 10.1038/s41588-022-01192-y) to construct polygenic indices in two cohorts of children/adolescents in Australia (N = 1315) and the United Kingdom (N = 5461 at age 7; N = 4306 at age 16), and test whether the effect of measured genes on variation in reading ability is moderated by family SES. While polygenic indices and SES both showed statistically significant effects on reading and spelling performance, no interaction effect was found. These results are contrary to results of some twin studies in the United States that have found an interaction effect. Yet, these findings support the broader literature on gene x SES interaction that mostly report no such interaction in other cognitive traits outside the United States suggesting country differences in how strongly SES relates to education quality.

Abstract

Humans engage with music for various reasons that range from emotional regulation and relaxation to social bonding. While there are large inter-individual differences in how much humans enjoy music, little is known about the origins of those differences. Here, we disentangle the genetic factors underlying such variation. We collect data on several facets of music reward sensitivity, as measured by the Barcelona Music Reward Questionnaire, plus music perceptual abilities and general reward sensitivity from a large sample of Swedish twins (N = 9169; 2305 complete pairs). We estimate that genetic effects contribute up to 54% of the variability in music reward sensitivity, with 70% of these effects being independent of music perceptual abilities and general reward sensitivity. Furthermore, multivariate analyses show that genetic and environmental influences on the different facets of music reward sensitivity are partly distinct, uncovering distinct pathways to music enjoyment and different patterns of genetic associations with objectively assessed music perceptual abilities. These results paint a complex picture in which partially distinct sources of variation contribute to different aspects of musical enjoyment.

Abstract

Top-down effects of larger-grained linguistic chunks on their smaller-grained constituent parts have been established in both reading and speaking. However, typing as a domain of language production has been less thoroughly investigated in this regard. In the current paper, we present a copy task in which participants were shown a stimulus and asked to type it. Their keystrokes were recorded, allowing insight into both typing fluency (in interkey intervals, or IKIs) and latency to typing onset (in response times, or RTs). Critically, stimuli varied in both lexical status (words vs. non-words) and collocational status (frequently co-occurring vs. novel word pairs). As expected, non-words were reacted to and typed more slowly than words. At the group level, collocated word pairs were initiated and typed slightly faster than non-collocated pairs, but this effect was not statistically significant. However, evidence emerged for considerable individual differences in the trade-off between RTs and IKIs, suggesting that typers differ in the stage at which they benefit from top-down facilitation when typing collocated word pairs. This complements previous research on top-down effects and is consistent with the view that the mental processing blocks supporting written language production and comprehension may align—though the extent and timing of such alignment appear to vary across individuals.

Abstract

When faced with an ambiguous novel word such as ‘ranana’, how do listeners decide whether they heard a mispronunciation of a familiar target (‘banana’) or a label for an unfamiliar novel item? We examined this question by combining visual-world eye-tracking with an offline forced-choice judgment paradigm. In two studies, we show evidence that participants entertain repair and novel label interpretations of novel words that were created by editing a familiar target word in multiple phonetic features (Experiment 1) or a single phonetic feature (Experiment 2). Repair (‘ranana’ = a banana) and learning (‘ranana’ = a novel referent) were both common interpretation strategies, and learning was strongly associated with visual attention to the novel image after it was referred to in a sentence. This indicates that repair and learning are both valid strategies for understanding novel words that depend upon a set of similar mechanisms, and suggests that attention during listening is causally related to whether one learns or repairs.

Abstract

Language processing is rapidly incremental, but evidence bearing upon this assumption comes from very few languages. In this paper we report on a study of incremental processing in Murrinhpatha, a polysynthetic Australian language, which expresses complex sentence-level meanings in a single verb, the full meaning of which is not clear until the final morph. Forty native Murrinhpatha speakers participated in a visual world eyetracking experiment in which they viewed two complex scenes as they heard a verb describing one of the scenes. The scenes were selected so that the verb describing the target scene had either no overlap with a possible description of the competitor image, or overlapped from the start (onset overlap) or at the end of the verb (rhyme overlap). The results showed that, despite meaning only being clear at the end of the verb, Murrinhpatha speakers made incremental predictions that differed across conditions. The findings demonstrate that processing in polysynthetic languages is rapid and incremental, yet unlike in commonly studied languages like English, speakers make parsing predictions based on information associated with bound morphs rather than discrete words.

Abstract

Human communication is inherently multimodal. Auditory speech, but also visual cues can be used to understand another talker. Most studies of audiovisual speech perception have focused on the perception of speech segments (i.e., speech sounds). However, less is known about the influence of visual information on the perception of suprasegmental aspects of speech like lexical stress. In two experiments, we investigated the influence of different visual cues (e.g., facial articulatory cues and beat gestures) on the audiovisual perception of lexical stress. We presented auditory lexical stress continua of disyllabic Dutch stress pairs together with videos of a speaker producing stress on the first or second syllable (e.g., articulating VOORnaam or voorNAAM). Moreover, we combined and fully crossed the face of the speaker producing lexical stress on either syllable with a gesturing body producing a beat gesture on either the first or second syllable. Results showed that people successfully used visual articulatory cues to stress in muted videos. However, in audiovisual conditions, we were not able to find an effect of visual articulatory cues. In contrast, we found that the temporal alignment of beat gestures with speech robustly influenced participants' perception of lexical stress. These results highlight the importance of considering suprasegmental aspects of language in multimodal contexts.

Abstract

Speech is inherently variable, requiring listeners to apply adaptation mechanisms to deal with the variability. A proposed perceptual adaptation mechanism is recalibration, whereby listeners learn to adjust cognitive representations of speech sounds based on disambiguating contextual information. Most studies on the role of recalibration in speech perception have focused on variability in particular speech segments (e.g., consonants/vowels), and speech has mostly been studied with a focus on talking heads. However, speech is often accompanied by visual bodily signals like hand gestures, and is thus multimodal. Moreover, variability in speech extends beyond segmental aspects alone and also affects prosodic aspects, like lexical stress. We currently do not understand well how listeners adjust their representations of lexical stress patterns to different speakers. In four experiments, we investigated recalibration of lexical stress perception, driven by lexico-orthographical information (Experiment 1) and by manual beat gestures (Experiments 2–4). Across experiments, we observed that these two types of disambiguating information (presented in an audiovisual exposure phase) led listeners to adjust their representations of lexical stress, with lasting consequences for subsequent spoken word recognition (in an audio-only test phase). However, evidence for generalization of this recalibration to new words was only found in the third experiment, suggesting that generalization may be limited. These results highlight that recalibration is a plausible mechanism for suprasegmental speech adaption in everyday communication and show that even the timing of simple hand gestures can have a lasting effect on auditory speech perception.

Abstract

Speech comprehension involves more than just identifying speech sounds. It also requires the use of prosodic cues, which can be conveyed auditorily (e.g., intonation), but also visually (e.g., prominence-lending beat gestures). Prior studies on unimodal speech emphasize the critical role of prosody in comprehension, in higher level processing (e.g., pragmatics), and even in lexical access. For instance, people are faster at identifying a word when it is prosodically accented than when it is unaccented. This study tested whether beat gestures, serving as visual prominence cues, can similarly aid lexical access even in situations where other cues are already highly supportive of word recognition (e.g., semantically constraining sentences). Moreover, we investigated if this facilitation effect would be modulated by the (mis)alignment of the beat gesture with the word-internal prominence (i.e., stressed syllables). To answer this question, we presented participants with videos of a talker producing semantically constraining sentences containing a critical disyllabic sentence-final target in a lexical decision task. The target was either produced without a gesture or accompanied by a beat gesture aligned to the stressed or unstressed syllable. Response times showed that participants were generally faster when the target was presented together with a beat gesture, regardless of its within-word alignment. Moreover, we found that this facilitatory effect was larger for words than pseudowords. These results provide evidence that beat gestures—even when they are not essential for successful speech comprehension—affect lexical access in highly constraining contexts.

Abstract

We present an exploratory cross-linguistic analysis of the quantity of target-child-directed speech and adult-directed speech in North American English (US & Canadian), United Kingdom English, Argentinian Spanish, Tseltal (Tenejapa, Mayan), and Yélî Dnye (Rossel Island, Papuan), using annotations from 69 children aged 2–36 months. Using a novel methodological approach, our cross-linguistic and cross-cultural findings support prior work suggesting that target-child-directed speech quantities are stable across early development, while adult-directed speech decreases. A preponderance of speech from women was found to a similar degree across groups, with less target-child-directed speech from men and children in the North American samples than elsewhere. Consistently across groups, children also heard more adult-directed than target-child-directed speech. Finally, the numbers of talkers present in any given clip strongly impacted children’s moment-to-moment input quantities. These findings illustrate how the structure of home life impacts patterns of early language exposure across diverse developmental contexts.

Abstract

To produce a word, speakers need to decide which concept to express, select an appropriate item from the mental lexicon and spell out its phonological form. The temporal dynamics of these processes remain a subject of debate. We investigated the time course of lexical access in picture naming with electroencephalography (EEG). Thirty participants (23 female) named pictures using simple nouns. The pictures varied in conceptual category (animate or inanimate), stress pattern (first or second syllable), and the structure of the first syllable (open or closed). Using time-resolved multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA), we decoded the time course in which each dimension was available during speech preparation. The results demonstrated above-chance decoding of animacy within 100 ms after picture onset, confirming early access to conceptual information. This was followed by stress pattern and syllable structure, at around 150 and 250 ms after picture onset, respectively. These results suggest that a word’s stress pattern can be retrieved before syllable structure information becomes available. An exploratory analysis demonstrated the availability of the word-initial phoneme within 100 ms after picture onset. This result hints at the possibility that during picture naming conceptual, phonological and phonetic information may be accessed rapidly and in parallel.

Abstract

Developmental psychology focuses on how psychological constructs change with age. In cognitive development research, however, the specifics of this emergence is often underspecified. Researchers often provisionally assume linear growth by including chronological age as a predictor in regression models. In this work, we aim to evaluate this assumption by examining the functional form of age trajectories across 25 phenomena in early linguistic and cognitive development by combining the results of multiple meta-analyses in Metalab, an open database. Surprisingly, for most meta-analyses, the effect size for the phenomenon did not change meaningfully across age. We investigated four possible hypotheses explaining this pattern: (1) age-related selection bias against younger infants; (2) methodological adaptation for older infants; (3) change in only a subset of conditions; and (4) positive growth only after infancy. None of these explained the lack of age-related growth in most datasets. Our work challenges the assumption of linear growth in early cognitive development and suggests the importance of uniform measurement across children of different ages.

Abstract

Expressions of politeness such as 'please' are prominent elements of interactional conduct that are explicitly targeted in early socialization and are subject to cultural expectations around socially desirable behavior. Yet their specific interactional functions remain poorly understood. Using conversation analysis supplemented with systematic coding, this study investigates when and where interactants use 'please' in everyday requests. We find that 'please' is rare, occurring in only 7 percent of request attempts. Interactants use 'please' to manage face-threats when a request is ill fitted to its immediate interactional context. Within this, we identify two environments in which 'please' prototypically occurs. First, 'please' is used when the requestee has demonstrated unwillingness to comply. Second, 'please' is used when the request is intrusive due to its incompatibility with the requestee’s engagement in a competing action trajectory. Our findings advance research on politeness and extend Goffman’s theory of face-work, with particular salience for scholarship on request behavior.

Abstract

Learning the meaning of a verb is challenging because learners need to resolve two types of ambi- guity: (1) word-referent mapping—finding the correct referent event of a verb, and (2) word-meaning mapping—inferring the correct meaning of the verb from the referent event (e.g., whether the meaning of an action word is TURNING or TWISTING). The present work examines how adult learners solve this challenge by utilizing both in-the-moment linguistic information within individual learning situ- ations and cross-situational statistical information across multiple learning situations. We investigate how different cues provided in the moment affect information selection and how cross-situational learning as a general computational mechanism allows for information integration over time. Two experiments were designed based on a Human Simulation Paradigm, in which adult learners were presented with a sequence of short videos from parent−toddler toy play and asked to guess a mystery verb the parent produced in each video. In Experiment 1, we compared individual learning situations containing linguistic information to the exact same learning scenes without linguistic information and found that linguistic information helped learners narrow down the meaning of a verb embedded in individual situations, which was consistent with prior research. In Experiment 2, the videos sharing the same target verb were presented in a blocked design to incorporate cross-situational statistics for the same verb. We measured the variability, convergence, and accuracy of participants’ guesses. Within-trial linguistic information allowed learners to quickly narrow down their search space and focus on a few relevant aspects in a scene, while cross-situational learning allowed them to fine-tune their learning further across trials. Our findings support a unified account wherein within-trial linguistic information and cross-situational statistical information are integrated for more efficient verb learning.

Abstract

This paper presents a model specification for group comparisons regarding a functional trend over time within a trial and learning across a series of trials in intensive binary longitudinal eye-tracking data. The functional trend and learning effects are modeled using by-variable smooth functions. This model specification is formulated as a generalized additive mixed model, which allowed for the use of the freely available mgcv package (Wood in Package ‘mgcv.’ https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/mgcv/mgcv.pdf, 2023) in R. The model specification was applied to intensive binary longitudinal eye-tracking data, where the questions of interest concern differences between individuals with and without brain injury in their real-time language comprehension and how this affects their learning over time. The results of the simulation study show that the model parameters are recovered well and the by-variable smooth functions are adequately predicted in the same condition as those found in the application.

Abstract

Dyslexia is a learning difficulty with neurodevelopmental origins, manifesting as reduced accuracy and speed in reading and spelling. It is substantially heritable and frequently co-occurs with other neurodevelopmental conditions, particularly attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Here, we investigate the genetic structure underlying dyslexia and a range of psychiatric traits using results from genome-wide association studies of dyslexia, ADHD, autism, anorexia nervosa, anxiety, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder,
schizophrenia, and Tourette syndrome. Genomic Structural Equation Modelling (GenomicSEM) showed heightened support for a model consisting of five correlated latent genomic factors described as: F1) compulsive disorders (including obsessive-compulsive disorder, anorexia nervosa, Tourette syndrome), F2) psychotic disorder (including bipolar disorder, schizophrenia), F3) internalising disorders (including anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder), F4) neurodevelopmental traits (including autism, ADHD), and F5) attention and learning difficulties (including ADHD, dyslexia). ADHD loaded more strongly on the attention and learning difficulties latent factor (F5) than on the neurodevelopmental traits latent factor (F4). The attention and learning difficulties latent factor (F5) was positively correlated with internalising disorders (.40), neurodevelopmental traits (.25) and psychotic disorders (.17) latent factors, and negatively correlated with the compulsive disorders (–.16) latent factor. These factor correlations are mirrored in genetic correlations observed between the attention and learning difficulties latent factor and other cognitive, psychological and wellbeing traits. We further investigated genetic variants underlying both dyslexia and ADHD, which implicated 49 loci (40 not previously found in GWAS of the individual traits) mapping to 174 genes (121 not found in GWAS of individual traits) as potential pleiotropic variants. Our study confirms the increased genetic relation between dyslexia and ADHD versus other psychiatric traits and uncovers novel pleiotropic variants affecting both traits. In future, analyses including additional co-occurring traits such as dyscalculia and dyspraxia will allow a clearer definition of the attention and learning difficulties latent factor, yielding further insights into factor structure and pleiotropic effects.

Abstract

Narrative discourse impairments are well documented in individuals with moderate-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). Studies of narrative discourse (i.e., story generation, story retelling) in this population have frequently focused on impairment of semantic relations across utterances and the larger discourse context (e.g., cohesion, coherence, story grammar). Less attention has been given to the temporal organization of narrative retelling in TBI. We applied temporal contiguity analyses, a technique traditionally used to characterize temporal organization of free recall of wordlists, to quantify the temporal organization of participants' story retellings with respect to the order in which the narrator originally presented the story details. We also conducted a parallel analysis of temporal contiguity of wordlist recall using data from the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning test. Participants with moderate-severe TBI and non-injured peers demonstrated above chance temporal organization and a tendency to make short transitions in the forward direction when recalling items in both the narrative recall and wordlist recall task. However, these effects were significantly reduced in the TBI group. Overall, their free recall performance was less temporally clustered, and they were more likely to make larger jumps between story details (or words in the wordlist recall task) than their non-injured peers when recalling stories. Examining free recall at multiple timepoints revealed that while repetition (i.e., multiple presentations of the wordlist) increased temporal organization of recall, long delays (i.e., one week) decreased temporal organization for both the TBI and non-injured groups. We propose that reduced temporal organization of narrative recall in individuals with moderate-severe TBI is linked to impairments in the declarative relational memory system. In line with retrieved-context models of free recall, memory disruption not only impacts the total number of story details recalled, but also the ability to use temporal context to encode and retrieve items in a sequentially organized way.

Abstract

This study evaluates a recent account of islands and parasitic gaps, which proposes that island violations are unacceptable in part because they contain a referring argument in the predicate that contributes discourse-processing complexity. In two acceptability judgment experiments in Dutch, participants rated three types of filler-gap constructions that were preceded by a context manipulating the discourse accessibility of a referring argument in the target construction. The constructions differed in the location of the gap, which was realized as the complement of the matrix verb (regular filler-gap dependencies), as the complement of the verb in an adjunct clause (adjunct island violations), or as both (parasitic gap constructions). Adjunct clauses were untensed in Experiment 1 and tensed in Experiment 2. In both experiments, island violations were rated as unacceptable, regardless of whether the referring argument was discourse-accessible or discourse-novel. Parasitic gap constructions, which do not contain a referring argument in the predicate, were rated as acceptable, but only when the parasitic gap was located in an untensed clause. Reviewing these results from syntactic and discourse-processing perspectives, we conclude that the difference between islands and parasitic gap constructions is not a matter of discourse-processing complexity. The data instead support a primarily syntactic account of parasitic gaps.

Abstract

Studies of perception have long shown that the brain adds information to its sensory analysis of the physical environment. A touchstone example for humans is language use: to comprehend a physical signal like speech, the brain must add linguistic knowledge, including syntax. Yet, syntactic rules and representations are widely assumed to be atemporal (i.e., abstract and not bound by time), so they must be translated into time-varying signals for speech comprehension and production. Here, we test 3 different models of the temporal spell-out of syntactic structure against brain activity of people listening to Dutch stories: an integratory bottom-up parser, a predictive top-down parser, and a mildly predictive left-corner parser. These models build exactly the same structure but differ in when syntactic information is added by the brain—this difference is captured in the (temporal distribution of the) complexity metric “incremental node count.” Using temporal response function models with both acoustic and information-theoretic control predictors, node counts were regressed against source-reconstructed delta-band activity acquired with magnetoencephalography. Neural dynamics in left frontal and temporal regions most strongly reflect node counts derived by the top-down method, which postulates syntax early in time, suggesting that predictive structure building is an important component of Dutch sentence comprehension. The absence of strong effects of the left-corner model further suggests that its mildly predictive strategy does not represent Dutch language comprehension well, in contrast to what has been found for English. Understanding when the brain projects its knowledge of syntax onto speech, and whether this is done in language-specific ways, will inform and constrain the development of mechanistic models of syntactic structure building in the brain.

Abstract

Current theories of speaking suggest that the structure of the lexicon is flexible and changes with exposure. We tested this claim in two experiments that investigated whether the word frequency effect was moderated by item repetition within and across experimental sessions. Participants named high frequency (HF) and low frequency (LF) pictures (Experiment 1) and words (Experiment 2) six times. In both experiments, participants were faster to name HF than LF pictures or words, but this effect was eliminated with repetition. Importantly, this word frequency effect was still absent when participants returned up to 2 weeks later and named old HF and LF pictures, whose names they had produced before, together with new HF and LF pictures, whose names they had not produced. These findings suggest that producing a word multiple times in short succession alters its long-term accessibility, making it easier to produce later.

Abstract

Name agreement (NA) refers to the degree to which speakers agree on a picture’s name. A robust finding is that speakers are faster to name pictures with high agreement (HA) than those with low agreement (LA). This NA effect is thought to occur because LA pictures strongly activate several names, and so speakers need time to select one. HA pictures, in contrast, strongly activate a single name and so there is no need to select one name out of several alternatives. Recent models of lexical access suggest that the structure of the mental lexicon changes with experience. Thus, speakers should consider a range of names when naming LA pictures, but the extent to which they consider each of these names should change with experience. We tested these hypotheses in two picture-naming experiments. In Experiment 1, participants were faster to name LA than HA pictures when they named each picture once. Importantly, they were faster to produce modal names (provided by most participants) than alternative names for LA pictures, consistent with the view that speakers activate multiple names for LA pictures. In Experiment 2, participants were familiarised with the modal name before the experiment and named each picture three times. Although there was still an NA effect when participants named the pictures the first time, it was reduced in comparison to Experiment 1 and was further reduced with each picture repetition.Thus, familiarisation and repetition reduced the NA effect, but did not eliminate it, suggesting speakers activate a range of plausible names.

Abstract

Word frequency (WF) and name agreement (NA) affect a word’s accessibility during speech production. Speakers are faster to name pictures with high-frequency (e.g. dog) compared to low-frequency names (e.g. rhinoceros) and those that a group of speakers tend to agree on the name of (high NA; e.g. arm) than those that they do not (low NA; e.g. sofa, couch). Recent accounts of lexical access suggest that the structure of the mental lexicon is flexible and changes with exposure. Consistent with this view, repetition priming studies have shown that low-frequency and low NA items benefit from repetition more than high-frequency and high NA items. But there is little evidence that repetition has long-term effects on WF and NA. We tested this issue in a two-session (online) picture naming study. In Session 1, participants named pictures varying in WF and NA three times each, and so we could test the short-term effects of repetition on WF and NA. We tested long-term effects of repetition by having participants name the same old items 1 week later in Session 2, together with new items that they had not named previously. In Session 1 the WF effect was eliminated by repetition, while the NA effect was reduced but still present. Thus, previous naming affected both the WF and NA effects. However, both effects reappeared in Session 2. These findings suggest that previous naming can reduce the WF and NA effect, thus affecting how easy it is to produce a word, but these effects are relatively short-lived.

Abstract

Abstract In het vijfenzeventigste jaar van het bestaan van de Algemene Vereniging voor Taalwetenschap (AVT) waait er een fascistische wind in Nederland. Universiteiten gehoorzamen bij voorbaat door gedwee te bezuinigen en onderwijsprogramma’s te vernederlandsen. De taalwetenschap blijft “een hoeveelheid nutteloze beschaving waarvoor zo weinig mogelijk geld beschikbaar kan worden gesteld” (zoals voorzitter Stutterheim schreef in 1952). Misschien wel daarom belichaamt ze ook de onafhankelijkheid van denken en doen die we in deze tijd hard nodig hebben. Dit commentaar is een versie van de afscheidsrede van Mark Dingemanse, AVT-voorzitter 2022–2025.

Abstract

A long-standing question in language development concerns the nature of the relationship between early lexical and grammatical knowledge. The very strong correlation between the two has led some to argue that lexical and grammatical knowledge may be inseparable, consistent with psycholinguistic theories that eschew a distinction between the two systems. However, little research has explicitly examined whether early lexical and grammatical knowledge are statistically separable. Moreover, there are two under-appreciated methodological challenges in such research. First, the relationship between lexical and grammatical knowledge may change during development. Second, non-linear mappings between true and observed scores on scales of lexical and grammatical knowledge could lead to spurious multidimensionality. In the present study, we overcome these challenges by using vocabulary and grammar data from several developmental time points and a statistical method robust to such non-linear mappings. In Study 1, we examined item-level vocabulary and grammar data from two American English samples from a large online repository of data from studies employing a commonly used language development scale. We found clear evidence that vocabulary and grammar were separable by two years of age. In Study 2, we combined data from two longitudinal studies of language acquisition that used the same scale (at 18/19, 21, 24 and 30 months) and found evidence that vocabulary and grammar were, under some conditions, separable by 18 months. Results indicate that, while there is clearly a very strong relationship between vocabulary and grammar knowledge in early language development, the two are separable. Implications for the mechanisms underlying language development are discussed.

Abstract

Speech error monitoring recruits the medial frontal cortex (MFC) region in the human brain. Error monitoring-related activity in the MFC has been interpreted both in terms of conflict monitoring and feedback-driven control, but as similar regions of the MFC are implicated in various levels of behavioral control ranging from basic motor movement control to high-level cognitive control functions, a more comprehensive account is needed. Moreover, as speech errors and other actions that involve varying control demands engage a widespread yet partially overlapping set of regions of the MFC, such an account should ideally explain the anatomical distribution of error-related functional activations within the MFC. Here we wanted to assess the hypothesis that the MFC has a similar role in the evaluation of action outcomes for motor and mental actions, operating along a rostral-caudal gradient of higher-lower degree of cognitive control demands involving prediction errors from both sensory and epistemic sources. To this end, we conducted an individual-specific annotation of task-fMRI BOLD activation peaks related to overt speech error monitoring (i.e. that involve the largest degree of cognitive control demands, Study I and II), tongue movement monitoring (i.e. that involve an intermediate degree of cognitive control demands) and tongue movement (i.e. that involve the lowest degree of cognitive control demands, Study II) in the MFC region. Results revealed overlapping clusters across the three contrasts across the MFC, but importantly both the number of peaks and their relative position along the rostral caudal axis were consistent with a hierarchical rostral caudal processing gradient in the MFC. While tongue movement showed more caudal activation in the MFC, overt speech error monitoring showed more rostral activation, and tongue movement monitoring patterned in between. Furthermore, the combined results of both studies suggested that activation peaks were located more dorsally for participants that had a paracingulate gyrus, replicating a previously documented effect for movement and further supporting a common functional role of the MFC across very distinct actions.

Abstract

The duration of animal vocalizations varies between and within species. Which mammals can learn to control this duration? Such respiratory production learning is a scarcely studied subcomponent of vocal learning. Here, we test the hypothesis that harbor seals (Phoca vitulina) are capable of respiratory production learning by testing whether a harbor seal can be trained to i) actively control its vocalization’s duration in two directions (short and long), and ii) exceed the pre-experimental vocalization’s duration (min = 0.202 s, max = 2.621 s). The seal learned to produce uninterrupted vocalizations spanning more than two orders of magnitude in duration, from 79 ms to 9.23 s. Our findings demonstrate a remarkable level of respiratory control in a harbor seal: this respiratory production learning encompasses an extensive range of sound durations and arises at a young age. Producing durations that span such a magnitude is hardly reported in the non-human animal literature; this capacity may be orthogonal to other vocal learning modules and should be tested in more species, both vocal production learners and non-learners.

Abstract

The human brain is an intricate network of cortical regions interconnected by white matter pathways, dynamically supporting cognitive functions. While cortical asymmetries have been consistently reported, the asymmetry of white matter connections remains less explored. This chapter provides a brief overview of asymmetries observed at the cortical, subcortical, cytoarchitectural, and receptor levels before exploring the detailed connectional anatomy of the human brain. It thoroughly examines the lateralization and interindividual variability of 56 distinct white matter tracts, offering a comprehensive review of their structural characteristics and interindividual variability. Additionally, we provide an extensive update on the asymmetry of a wide range of white matter tracts using high-resolution data from the Human Connectome Project (7T HCP www.humanconnectome.org). Future research and advanced quantitative analyses are crucial to understanding fully how asymmetry contributes to interindividual variability. This comprehensive exploration enhances our understanding of white matter organization and its potential implications for brain function.

Abstract

This chapter introduces the origins and development of our current anatomical terminology. It scrutinizes the historical evolution and etymological significance of the over 1900 official anatomical terms in the current nomenclature, underscoring their impact on the contemporary comprehension of cognitive neuroanatomy. The chapter traces unification efforts from the Basel Nomina Anatomica in 1895 to the 1998 Terminologia Anatomica, noting challenges arising from outdated terminology in light of recent anatomical advancements.

Highlighting the influence of terminologies on interpretations of brain anatomy, the chapter explores several anatomical mapping methods such as surface, sectional, connectional, and functional anatomy. It illuminates discrepancies and controversies, exemplified by divergent interpretations of the number of brain lobes and the definitions of 'Broca' and 'Wernicke' areas.

The chapter explores anatomical terms' historical and cultural underpinnings, encompassing mythonyms, eponyms, and cultural influences on nomenclature. It critically examines the implications of these terminologies on contemporary research and shows that Large Language Models mirror these discrepancies. It underscores the need for more inclusive and culturally sensitive approaches in anatomical education.

Lastly, we advocate for updating anatomical nomenclature, suggesting that a deeper understanding of these terminologies could provide insights and aid in resolving ongoing debates in the field. This examination sheds light on historical knowledge and emphasizes the dynamic interplay between language, culture, and anatomy in shaping our comprehension of the neurobiology of the brain and how we navigate neuroanatomy in the 21st century.

Abstract

We report four experiments investigating the effect of prosody on listening comprehension in 11-13-year-old children. Across all experiments, participants listened to short object descriptions and answered content-based questions about said objects. In Experiments 1-3, the descriptions were read in an emotionally positive or neutral tone of voice. In Experiment 4, the descriptions were read by a neutral human voice or by text-to-speech software. The results from Experiments 1-3 consistently showed higher accuracy (i.e. more correct answers to the questions) when the descriptions were read using positive prosody. Experiment 4 found higher accuracy for the human voice compared to the text-to-speech recordings. The human voice was also rated as more pleasant and easier to understand than the text-to-speech voice. In sum, this study found that positive, compared to neutral, prosody, and a human voice, compared to artificial speech synthesis, can improve listening comprehension, showcasing the role of prosody in listening comprehension.

Abstract

Infant-Directed Speech (IDS) and Adult-Directed Speech (ADS) are two registers that can differ across multiple linguistic domains and social contexts. In languages where the phonemes’ acoustic clarity is modified, there is a typical assumption in the literature that these phonemes are either hyper- or hypo-articulated. These modifications have received considerable attention in language research, serving as the basis of proposals concerning the potential didactic and communicative (e.g., affective) functions of IDS. The current study adds to this literature by examining how vowels and consonants are modified in IDS in a previously unstudied African language with an unusual phoneme inventory: Tashlhiyt Berber. Seven caregivers were recorded interacting with: (a) infants between the ages of 0;6 and 1;5, and (b) an adult experimenter who is a native speaker of Tashlhiyt. In IDS, we found longer vowel duration for content words and exaggerated pitch levels across the board, successfully replicating cross-linguistic patterns. Counter to the hyper-articulation hypothesis, there was more vowel overlap in IDS, while no differences were observed between IDS and ADS for overall vowel space size. We additionally found that speakers tend to completely neutralize certain consonant contrasts in IDS, rendering them indistinguishable to the infant. Our results are most consistent with the proposal that caregivers use IDS to guide and maintain their infant’s attention and to convey positive affect.

Abstract

Increasing evidence suggests that interlocutors use visual communicative signals to form predictions about unfolding utterances, but there is little data on the predictive potential of facial signals in conversation. In an online experiment with virtual agents, we examine whether facial signals produced by an addressee may allow speakers to anticipate the response to a question before it is given. Participants (n = 80) viewed videos of short conversation fragments between two virtual humans. Each fragment ended with the Questioner asking a question, followed by a pause during which the Responder looked either straight at the Questioner (baseline), or averted their gaze, or accompanied the straight gaze with one of the following facial signals: brow raise, brow frown, nose wrinkle, smile, squint, mouth corner pulled back (dimpler). Participants then indicated on a 6-point scale whether they expected a “yes” or “no” response. Analyses revealed that all signals received different ratings relative to the baseline: brow raises, dimplers, and smiles were associated with more positive responses, gaze aversions, brow frowns, nose wrinkles, and squints with more negative responses. Qur findings show that interlocutors may form strong associations between facial signals and upcoming responses to questions, highlighting their predictive potential in face-to-face conversation.

Abstract

Previous research has suggested the importance of relational language and working memory in children’s relational reasoning. The tendency to use language (e.g., using more relational than object-focused language, prioritizing focal objects over background in linguistic descriptions) could reflect children’s biases toward the relational versus object-based solutions in a relational match-to-sample (RMTS) task. In the lack of any apparent object match as a foil option, object-focused children might rely on other cognitive mechanisms (i.e., working memory) to choose a relational match in the RMTS task. The current study examined the interactive roles of language- and working memory-related sources of variation in Turkish-learning preschoolers’ relational reasoning. We collected data from 4- and 5-year-olds (N = 41) via Zoom in the RMTS task, a scene description task, and a backward word span task. Generalized binomial mixed effects models revealed that children who used more relational language and background-focused scene descriptions performed worse in the relational reasoning task. Furthermore, children with less frequent relational language use and focal object descriptions of the scenes benefited more from working memory to succeed in the relational reasoning task. These results suggest additional working memory demands for object-focused children to choose relational matches in the RMTS task, highlighting the importance of examining the interactive effects of different cognitive mechanisms on relational reasoning.

Abstract

Introduction: Experiencing a lack of identity verification is an issue which most of the transgender community struggles with. Non-binary people’s daily struggle for affirmation may be even more difficult in a binary gendered language, which forces speakers to grammatically encode gender distinctions in speech. As such, this study explores such experiences and their impact on non-binary individuals in Italian context.
Methods: We explored the experiences of 13 non-binary Italians via semi-structured interviews. Participants were recruited through social media and LGBTQ+ groups in Italy and the UK. Reflexive thematic analysis was adopted to analyze the data.
Results: Three main themes were developed: (1) Structures of Erasure (subthemes: Unspoken Selves, Gender binary prison, and Institutional binary gender fixation), (2) The Labor of Affirmation, and (3) Affirmative Networks. Our findings suggest that non-binary adults perceived the lack of appropriate and accessible language as being limiting in capturing, expressing, and affirming their identities. For many, this was associated with negative implications for their well-being. Nevertheless, they identified that their families, friends, and community created safe spaces where they felt recognized.
Discussion: These results expand current understanding of the linguistic mechanisms behind non-affirmation and emphasize the importance of having a support network and more accessible gender-neutral Italian for improving mental health and identity affirmation. Furthermore, these findings contribute to our understanding of non-affirmation as not just an act done by other people, but also the inability to express one’s gender in a way that is congruent with their inner self-concept.

Abstract

Translational network neuroscience aims to integrate advanced neuroimaging and data analysis techniques into clinical practice to better understand and treat neurological disorders. Despite the promise of technologies such as functional MRI and diffusion MRI combined with network analysis tools, the field faces several challenges that hinder its swift clinical translation. We have identified nine key roadblocks that impede this process: (a) theoretical and basic science foundations; (b) network construction, data interpretation, and validation; (c) MRI access, data variability, and protocol standardization; (d) data sharing; (e) computational resources and expertise; (f) interdisciplinary collaboration; (g) industry collaboration and commercialization; (h) operational efficiency, integration, and training; and (i) ethical and legal considerations. To address these challenges, we propose several possible solution strategies. By aligning scientific goals with clinical realities and establishing a sound ethical framework, translational network neuroscience can achieve meaningful advances in personalized medicine and ultimately improve patient care. We advocate for an interdisciplinary commitment to overcoming translational hurdles in network neuroscience and integrating advanced technologies into routine clinical practice.

Abstract

Face-to-face communication is not only about ‘what’ is said but also ‘how’ it is said, both in speech and bodily signals. Beat gestures are rhythmic hand movements that typically accompany prosodic prominence in con-versation. Yet, it is still unclear how beat gestures influence language comprehension. On the one hand, beat gestures may share the same functional role of focus markers as prosodic prominence. Accordingly, they would drive attention towards the concurrent speech and highlight its content. On the other hand, beat gestures may trigger inferences of high speaker confidence, generate the expectation that the sentence content is correct and thereby elicit the commitment to the truth of the statement. This study directly disentangled the two hypotheses by evaluating additive and interactive effects of prosodic prominence and beat gestures on language comprehension. Participants watched videos of a speaker uttering sentences and judged whether each sentence was true or false. Sentences sometimes contained a world knowledge violation that may go unnoticed (‘semantic illusion’). Combining beat gestures with prosodic prominence led to a higher degree of semantic illusion, making more world knowledge violations go unnoticed during language comprehension. These results challenge current theories proposing that beat gestures are visual focus markers. To the contrary, they suggest that beat gestures automatically trigger inferences of high speaker confidence and thereby elicit the commitment to the truth of the statement, in line with Grice’s cooperative principle in conversation. More broadly, our findings also highlight the influence of metacognition on language comprehension in face-to-face ommunication.

Abstract

Electroencephalography (EEG) is an established method for investigating neurocognitive functions during human development. In cognitive neuroscience, time-frequency analysis of the EEG is a widely used analytical approach. This paper introduces WTools, a new MATLAB-based toolbox for time-frequency analysis of EEG signals using complex wavelet transformation. WTools features an intuitive GUI that guides users through the analysis steps, focusing on essential parameters. Being free and open-source, it can be integrated and expanded with new features, making it a handy tool that is growing its popularity in developmental cognitive neuroscience. While the default settings follow established pipelines in developmental research, the toolbox also provides the flexibility to accommodate settings more commonly used in adult neuroscience. Here, we provide a detailed description of the WTools algorithm for wavelet transformation and we compare it with state-of-the-art methods implemented in EEGLAB. Alongside the official tool release, we offer a comprehensive, illustrated tutorial with sample infant EEG data designed to support novice users, enhance accessibility and promote the transparent and reproducible usage of WTools.

Abstract

Purpose:
The aim of this tutorial is to show how the rise of molecular technologies and analytical methods in human genetics yields exciting new ways to understand the biological foundations of spoken and written language. The focus is on complementary strategies capturing genetic variation of different kinds (rare gene disruptions and common DNA polymorphisms), discussing how these can be associated with developmental speech, language, and reading disorders as well as with interindividual differences in the general population.
Results:
The first half of the tutorial discusses rare variants that are sufficient themselves to cause a severe speech and/or language disorder. This begins with lessons learned from studying FOXP2 disruptions that cause childhood apraxia of speech, accompanied by impaired language production and comprehension, before considering how genome or exome sequencing has uncovered pathogenic variants in an array of additional neurodevelopmental genes, including CHD3, DDX3X, KAT6A, SETBP1, SETD1A, WDR5, and ZFHX4. The second half of the tutorial covers the study of common DNA variants with individually tiny effect sizes, highlighting the challenges of robustly associating them with variability in language-related skills. Against this background, a shift from small candidate gene studies to large-scale genome-wide association study designs is transforming the landscape of the field, gaining leverage from team science approaches and personal genomics. The shift is illustrated with selected examples of recent studies of relevant quantitative measures and diagnostic status in many thousands of participants.
Conclusions:
This work demonstrates the dramatic impact genomic innovations are having on the language sciences and how molecular genetic approaches can address long-standing questions about neurobiology and the evolution of distinctive human traits. Potential translational consequences for speech or language pathology vary according to the types of DNA variation and will benefit from enhanced communication about the roles of genomics in clinical contexts.

Abstract

The brain is the most magnificent structure, and we are only at the cusp of unraveling some of its complexity. Neuroanatomy is the best tool to map the brain's structural complexity. As such, neuroanatomy is not just an academic exercise; it serves our fundamental understanding of the neurobiology of cognition and improves clinical practice. A deepened anatomical understanding has advanced our conceptual grasp of the evolution of the brain, interindividual variability of cognition in health and disease, and the conceptual shift toward the emergence of cognition. For the past 20 years, diffusion imaging tractography has dramatically facilitated these advances by enabling the study of the delicate networks that orchestrate brain processes (for review, see Thiebaut de Schotten and Forkel, 2022). Several steps are consistent across all studied populations and brain states (health/disease) when analyzing tractography data. We discuss various considerations for dissections across populations and give practical tips on common pitfalls and features to improve the visualization of the dissections. We briefly discuss specific considerations for manual dissections in nonhuman primates. Lastly, we provide an atlas of regions of interest (ROIs) for the most commonly delineated white matter connections in the human brain.

Abstract

Lateralization is a defining characteristic of the human brain, often studied through localized approaches that focus on interhemispheric differences between homologous pairs of regions. It is also important to emphasize an integrative perspective of global brain asymmetry, in which hemispheric differences are understood through global patterns across the entire brain.

Abstract

Finding and facilitating commonalities between the linguistic behaviors of large language models and humans could lead to major breakthroughs in our understanding of the acquisition, processing, and evolution of language. However, most findings on human–LLM similarity can be attributed to training on human data. The field of emergent machine-to-machine communication provides an ideal testbed for discovering which pressures are neural agents naturally exposed to when learning to communicate in isolation, without any human language to start with. Here, we review three cases where mismatches between the emergent linguistic behavior of neural agents and humans were resolved thanks to introducing theoretically-motivated inductive biases. By contrasting humans, large language models, and emergent communication agents, we then identify key pressures at play for language learning and emergence: communicative success, production effort, learnability, and other psycho-/sociolinguistic factors. We discuss their implications and relevance to the field of language evolution and acquisition. By mapping out the necessary inductive biases that make agents' emergent languages more human-like, we not only shed light on the underlying principles of human cognition and communication, but also inform and improve the very use of these models as valuable scientific tools for studying language learning, processing, use, and representation more broadly.

Abstract

In the current paper, we examined the extent to which cross-linguistic structural priming effects can be found in genetically-unrelated languages, assessing the sensitivity of priming to varying degrees of overlap between the prime and target languages. In three experiments (Ns = 59, 57, 52), we tested the priming of L2 English passive sentences in response to patient-initial prime sentences in Tagalog (Experiments 1, 2) and Indonesian (Experiment 3). The linguistic properties of Tagalog and Indonesian allowed us to manipulate prime-target overlap in thematic role order, syntactic-thematic role mapping, and constituent order. Cross-linguistic priming effects were moderated by the degree of linguistic overlap between prime and target: priming effects were stronger given an overlap in syntactic-thematic role mapping, and strongest for shared constituent order. The results suggest that cross-linguistic priming effects can have different loci, and that each one has an additive effect on priming magnitude.

Abstract

Background
Rapid population-level identification of language disorders could help provide care to young children to improve their outcomes. Two previous studies identified and replicated up to six parent-reported items that predicted 11-year language outcome with ≥71 % sensitivity and specificity. Here, we assess whether including genetic propensity for toddlerhood vocabulary improves predictive accuracy.
Method
The Early Language in Victoria Study (ELVS) recruited 1910 8-month-olds in Melbourne in 2003–2004. The Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC) recruited 5107 0–1-year-olds across Australia in 2004. Both collected parent-reported items at 2–3 years, a comparable 11-year language outcome: the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF-4) Core Language score or Recalling Sentences subtest, and biospecimens for genotyping. We derived polygenic scores capturing participants’ genetic propensity for parent-reported 24–38-month vocabulary. We calculated univariate associations with continuous language outcomes. We used ensemble method SuperLearner to estimate how accurately the parent-reported predictors and polygenic scores predict low 11-year language outcome (>1.5 standard deviations below the mean) in each cohort.
Results
Language outcome was available for 839 ELVS and 1441 LSAC participants. Polygenic scores accounted for little variance in continuous language outcomes (R2 < 1.3 %). Adding polygenic scores to the predictor sets increased accuracy of predicting language outcome by up to 7 %, but inconsistently between analyses.
Conclusions
Polygenic scores derived for toddlerhood vocabulary did not meaningfully improve predictive accuracy of individuals’ language outcome when added to the phenotypic predictor set. Presently, parent-reported measures or clinician observation appear best for predicting language outcome at this age.

Abstract

The human brain must add information to the acoustic speech signal in order to understand language. Many accounts propose that the prosodic structure of utterances (including their syllabic rhythm and speech melody), in combination with stored lexical knowledge, cue and interact with higher order abstract semantic and syntactic information. While cortical rhythms, particularly in the delta and theta band, synchronize to quasi-rhythmic low-level acoustic speech features, it remains unclear how the human brain encodes abstract speech properties in neural rhythms in the absence of an acoustic signal, i.e. when speakers hold planned sentences in working memory. This study disentangles the contributions of prosodic and syntactic features in cortical rhythms during delayed sentence repetition. Using high-resolution ECoG during awake tumor surgery in the left perisylvian cortex in nine patients (five female), we show that the phase of neural rhythms with frequencies ranging from 1-48 Hz and the broadband gamma power envelope code both low-level acoustic and abstract syntactic speech features during sentence processing and retention. Syntax and prosody coding occurred in the same frequency bands, which argues against the assumption of different frequency channels for processing and representing these speech features. Our data suggest the brain leverages the phase of various neural rhythms to code both acoustic and abstract linguistic features.

Abstract

In face-to-face interaction, we use multiple modalities, including speech and gestures, to communicate information and resolve references to objects. However, how representational co-speech gestures refer to objects remains understudied from a computational perspective. In this work, we address this gap by introducing a multimodal reference resolution task centred on representational gestures, while simultaneously tackling the challenge of learning robust gesture embeddings. We propose a self-supervised pre-training approach to gesture representation learning that grounds body movements in spoken language. Our experiments show that the learned embeddings align with expert annotations and have significant predictive power. Moreover, reference resolution accuracy further improves when (1) using multimodal gesture representations, even when speech is unavailable at inference time, and (2) leveraging dialogue history. Overall, our findings highlight the complementary roles of gesture and speech in reference resolution, offering a step towards more naturalistic models of human-machine interaction.

Abstract

When speakers refer to objects in the world, they often overinform: provide their listener with redundant adjectival information. Contrary to classical theories in linguistics, recent theories have framed overinformativeness as an efficient means of grounding reference in perceptual information of high discriminability to facilitate listener comprehension. However, the generalisability of such theories is constrained by the methodological challenge associated with reliably manipulating the perceptual discriminability of naturalistic stimuli. Here, we overcome these methodological challenges, using methods from psychophysics to manipulate the perceptual discriminability of colour and material attributes in a reference-production experiment. We provide a robust validation of the view that overinformative reference is driven by speakers grounding expressions in attributes of high discriminability. However, we also find that colour information is privileged above and beyond such factors of discriminability.

Abstract

Children need to learn the demands of their native language in the early vocabulary development phase. In this dynamic process, parental multimodal input may shape neurodevelopmental trajectories while also being tailored by child-related factors. Moving beyond typically characterized group profiles, in this article, we synthesize growing evidence on the effects of parental multimodal input (amount, quality, or absence), domain-specific input (space and math), and language-specific input (causal verbs and sound symbols) on preterm, full-term, and deaf children's early vocabulary development, focusing primarily on research with children learning Turkish and Turkish Sign Language. We advocate for a theoretical perspective, integrating neonatal characteristics and parental input, and acknowledging the unique constraints of languages.

Abstract

When language abilities in aphasia are assessed in clinical and research settings, the standard practice is to examine each language of a multilingual person separately. But many multilingual individuals, with and without aphasia, mix their languages regularly when they communicate with other speakers who share their languages. We applied a novel approach to scoring language production of a multilingual person with aphasia. Our aim was to discover whether the assessment outcome would differ meaningfully when we count accurate responses in only the target language of the assessment session versus when we apply a translanguaging framework, that is, count all accurate responses, regardless of the language in which they were produced. The participant is a Farsi-German-English speaking woman with chronic moderate aphasia. We examined the participant’s performance on two picture-naming tasks, an answering wh-question task, and an elicited narrative task. The results demonstrated that scores in English, the participant’s third-learned and least-impaired language did not differ between the two scoring methods. Performance in German, the participant’s moderately impaired second language benefited from translanguaging-based scoring across the board. In Farsi, her weakest language post-CVA, the participant’s scores were higher under the translanguaging-based scoring approach in some but not all of the tasks. Our findings suggest that whether a translanguaging-based scoring makes a difference in the results obtained depends on relative language abilities and on pragmatic constraints, with additional influence of the linguistic distances between the languages in question.

Abstract

Contemporary artificial intelligence models owe much of their success and discontents to connectionism, a framework in cognitive science that has been (and continues to be) highly influential. Herein, we analyze artificial neural networks: (a) when used as scientific instruments of study and (b) when functioning as emergent arbiters of the zeitgeist in the cognitive, computational, and neural sciences. Building on our previous work with respect to analogizing between artificial neural networks and cognition, brains, or behavior (Guest & Martin, 2023), we use metatheoretical analysis techniques (Guest, 2024), including formal logic, to characterize two distinct tendencies within connectionism that we dub classical and modern, with divergent properties, for example, goals, mechanisms, and scientific questions. We also demonstrate how we, as a field, often fail to follow important lines of argument to their end—this results in a paradoxical praxis. By engaging more deeply with (meta)theory surrounding artificial neural networks, our field can obviate the cycle of artificial intelligence winters and summers, which need not be inevitable

Abstract

Age at onset of walking is an important early childhood milestone which is used clinically and in public health screening. In this genome-wide association study meta-analysis of age at onset of walking (N = 70,560 European-ancestry infants), we identified 11 independent genome-wide significant loci. SNP-based heritability was 24.13% (95% confidence intervals = 21.86–26.40) with ~11,900 variants accounting for about 90% of it, suggesting high polygenicity. One of these loci, in gene RBL2, co-localized with an expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) in the brain. Age at onset of walking (in months) was negatively genetically correlated with ADHD and body-mass index, and positively genetically correlated with brain gyrification in both infant and adult brains. The polygenic score showed out-of-sample prediction of 3–5.6%, confirmed as largely due to direct effects in sib-pair analyses, and was separately associated with volume of neonatal brain structures involved in motor control. This study offers biological insights into a key behavioural marker of neurodevelopment.

Abstract

Language is inherently multimodal. In spoken languages, combined spoken and visual signals (e.g., co-speech gestures) are an integral part of linguistic structure and language representation. This requires an extension of the parallel architecture, which needs to include the visual signals concomitant to speech. We present the evidence for the multimodality of language. In addition, we propose that distributional semantics might provide a format for integrating speech and co-speech gestures in a common semantic representation.

Abstract

This article presents an in-depth conversation with Peter Hagoort, a leading cognitive neuroscientist and director of the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics. The interview explores the contrasting paradigms of Jerry Fodor and Jerome Bruner, focusing on their differing conceptions of the mind, including modularity, perception, and the role of cognitive processes. Hagoort reflects on Fodor’s modularity theory and Bruner’s New Look in Perception, examining their influence on his own research, particularly the language marker hypothesis, which highlights the symbolic and flexible nature of human internal models shaped by language. The discussion further addresses Fodor’s critique of relativism, his scepticism about cognitive neuroscience, and the relevance of these foundational ideas to contemporary questions in cognitive science and artificial intelligence, including the distinctions between human cognition and large language models. Through this dialogue, the article revisits key debates in cognitive science while situating them within current research and theoretical developments.

Abstract

Background

Neurodevelopmental conditions are highly heritable. Recent studies have shown that genomic heritability estimates can be confounded by genetic effects mediated via the environment (indirect genetic effects). However, the relative importance of direct versus indirect genetic effects on early variability in traits related to neurodevelopmental conditions is unknown.

Methods

The sample included up to 24,692 parent-offspring trios from the Norwegian MoBa cohort. We use Trio-GCTA to estimate latent direct and indirect genetic effects on mother-reported neurodevelopmental traits at age of 3 years (restricted and repetitive behaviors and interests, inattention, hyperactivity, language, social, and motor development). Further, we investigate to what extent direct and indirect effects are attributable to common genetic variants associated with autism, ADHD, developmental dyslexia, educational attainment, and cognitive ability using polygenic scores (PGS) in regression modeling.

Results

We find evidence for contributions of direct and indirect latent common genetic effects to inattention (direct: explaining 4.8% of variance, indirect: 6.7%) hyperactivity (direct: 1.3%, indirect: 9.6%), and restricted and repetitive behaviors (direct: 0.8%, indirect: 7.3%). Direct effects best explained variation in social and communication, language, and motor development (5.1%–5.7%). Direct genetic effects on inattention were captured by PGS for ADHD, educational attainment, and cognitive ability, whereas direct genetic effects on language development were captured by cognitive ability, educational attainment, and autism PGS. Indirect genetic effects on neurodevelopmental traits were primarily captured by educational attainment and/or cognitive ability PGS.

Conclusions

Results were consistent with differential contributions to neurodevelopmental traits in early childhood from direct and indirect genetic effects. Indirect effects were particularly important for hyperactivity and restricted and repetitive behaviors and interests and may be linked to genetic variation associated with cognition and educational attainment. Our findings illustrate the importance of within-family methods for disentangling genetic processes that influence early neurodevelopmental traits, even when identifiable associations are small.

Abstract

Our ability to predict upcoming events is a fundamental component of human cognition. One way in which we do so is by exploiting temporal regularities in sensory signals: the ticking of a clock, falling of footsteps and the motion of waves each provide a structure that may facilitate anticipation. But how strong is the effect of rhythmic anticipation on perception? And to what degree do people vary in their ability to capitalize on these regularities? In 2015, Hickok et al. introduced a behavioural paradigm to assess how a rhythmic auditory stimulus affects perception of subsequent targets (Hickok G, Farahbod H, Saberi K. 2015 The rhythm of perception: entrainment to acoustic rhythms induces subsequent perceptual oscillation. Psychol. Sci. 26, 1006–1013. (doi:10.1177/0956797615576533)). They tested five listeners and found that perception (target detection accuracy) fluctuated rhythmically just like the sound rhythm. Here, we replicate the original finding, assess how likely the finding is to be observed for any individual, and quantify effect size in a large sample of adult listeners (n = 149). We introduce a model-based analysis approach that allows separate estimates of amplitude and phase information in target detection responses, and quantifies effect size for individual listeners. Together our results strongly support the presence of oscillatory influences on target detection accuracy, as well as substantial variability in the magnitude of this effect across listeners.

Abstract

Many species produce rhythmic sound sequences. Some purportedly speed up their vocalizations throughout a display, reminiscent of—but not necessarily equivalent to—accelerando in human music. This phenomenon has been frequently reported but rarely quantified, which limits our ability to understand its mechanism, function, and evolution. Here, we use a suite of rhythm analyses to quantify temporal and acoustic features in the ecstatic display songs of male African penguins (Spheniscus demersus). We show that songs get faster (i.e., accelerando) and louder (i.e., crescendo) as they progress. The accelerando occurs because the intersyllable silences, not the syllables themselves, predictably shorten over time. This rhythmicity is maintained even when individuals take audible breaths. Individuals also show plasticity: when they start with a slow tempo, they speed up more strongly than when they start with a fast tempo. We hypothesize that this well-timed accelerando may stem from arousal-based mechanisms, biomechanical constraints, or more complex rhythmic control. Future work should test the mechanisms behind this intra-individual rhythmic variation since nonpasserine birds are thought to have limited vocal plasticity. By integrating a rich empirical dataset with cutting-edge rhythm analyses, we establish the necessary foundation to determine how such features evolved and their role(s) across communication systems.

Abstract

Individual differences in using language are prevalent in our daily lives. Language skills are often assessed in vocational (predominantly written language) and diagnostic contexts. Not much is known, however, about individual differences in spoken language skills. The lack of research is in part due to the lack of suitable test instruments. We introduce the Individual Differences in Language Skills (IDLaS-NL) test battery, a set of 31 behavioural tests that can be used to capture variability in language and relevant general cognitive skills in adult speakers of Dutch. The battery was designed to measure word and sentence production and comprehension skills, linguistic knowledge, nonverbal processing speed, working memory, and nonverbal reasoning. The present article outlines the structure of the battery, describes the materials and procedure of each test, and evaluates the battery’s factor structure based on the results of a sample of 748 Dutch adults, aged between 18 and 30 years, most of them students. The analyses demonstrate that the battery has good construct validity and can be reliably administered both in the lab and via the internet. We therefore recommend the battery as a valuable new tool to assess individual differences in language knowledge and skills; this future work may include linking language skills to other aspects of human cognition and life outcomes.

Abstract

It has long been known that we use words to perform speech acts foundational to everyday conversation, such as requesting, informing, proposing, or complaining. However, the natural environment of human language is face-to-face interaction where we use words and an abundance of visual signals to communicate. The multimodal nature of human language is increasingly recognised in the language and cognitive sciences. In line with this turn of the tide, findings demonstrate that facial signals significantly contribute to communicating intentions and that they may facilitate pragmatically appropriate responding in the fast-paced environment of conversation. In light of this, the notion of speech acts no longer seems appropriate, highlighting the need for a modality-neutral conception, such as social action.

Abstract

Repair is a core building block of human communication, allowing us to address problems of understanding in conversation. Past research has uncovered the basic mechanisms by which interactants signal and solve such problems. However, the focus has been on verbal interaction, neglecting the fact that human communication is inherently multimodal. Here, we focus on a visual signal particularly prevalent in signalling problems of understanding: eyebrow furrows and raises. We present, first, a corpus study showing that differences in eyebrow actions (furrows versus raises) were systematically associated with differences in the format of verbal repair initiations. Second, we present a follow-up study using an avatar that allowed us to test the causal consequences of addressee eyebrow movements, zooming into the effect of eyebrow furrows as signals of trouble in understanding in particular. The results revealed that addressees’ eyebrow furrows have a striking effect on speakers’ speech, leading speakers to produce answers to questions several seconds longer than when not perceiving addressee eyebrow furrows while speaking. Together, the findings demonstrate that eyebrow movements play a communicative role in initiating repair during conversation rather than being merely epiphenomenal and that their occurrence can critically influence linguistic behaviour. Thus, eyebrow movements should be considered core coordination devices in human conversational interaction.