Modelling of Individual Differences in Speakers' Responses to Auditory Feedback Perturbation using SimpleDiva

Abstract

Auditory feedback plays an important role in speech motor learning, yet little is known about the strength of motor learning and feedback control in speech development. In a previous study, we investigated compensatory and adaptive responses to sustained auditory in children compared to young adults, and found children to showed stronger effects within both the counteracting and following behavioral categories. In this proposal we use SimpleDiva to perform computer simulations to evaluate compensatory behavior to auditory feedback perturbation by estimating gains in auditory feedback control, somatosensory feedback control, and feedforward control/learning rate. Results indicate similar auditory and somatosensory feedback gains, but higher learning rates in children. Modelling of individual speakers with following or neutral responses fail to yield explanatory data, suggesting the need for model adjustments to understanding varied participant performance in perturbation experiments.

Frits van Brenk

External consultant in the Motor Speech Disorders Laboratory

My research and teaching interests include motor speech disorders, clinical linguistics, experimental psycholinguistics, speech science, and research methods.