The aim of this study was to provide evidence that memory and perceptual processing are underpinned by the same mechanisms. Specifically, the authors conducted 3 experiments that emphasized the sensory aspect of memory traces. They examined their predictions with a short-term priming paradigm based on 2 distinct phases: a learning phase consisting…

The purpose of this study was to explore the sensory profile of young children with ASD compared to young children with other developmental delays (DD) at first ASD assessment. Results found that young children with ASD had more tactile and taste/smell sensitivities and difficulties with auditory filtering than young children with other DD.…

The experiment reported in this article investigated the assumption that visual movement plays a role in musician-to-audience communication in marimba performance. Body movement is of particular relevance here as the expressive capabilities of the marimba are relatively restricted, and the movements required to play it are visible. Twenty-four…

One of the central themes in the study of language acquisition is the gap between the linguistic knowledge that learners demonstrate, and the apparent inadequacy of linguistic input to support induction of this knowledge. One of the first linguistic abilities in the course of development to exemplify this problem is in speech perception:…

Reliable perceptual judgement is important for documenting the severity of hypernasality, but high reliability can be difficult to obtain. This study investigated the effect of practice and feedback on intra-judge and inter-judge reliability of hypernasality judgements. The judges were 36 speech-language therapy students, who were randomly…

This article considers the design of poetry within the UK National Curriculum for English, where it is conceived of primarily as a print-based medium. With reference to curricular detail, the recent Ofsted survey of poetry teaching in schools, and to original research, it describes the role the existing curricular conception of poetry can play in…

Previous research has demonstrated that infants under 17 months have difficulty learning novel words in the laboratory when the words differ by only one consonant sound, irrespective of the magnitude of that difference. The current study explored whether 15-month-old infants can learn novel words that differ in only one vowel sound. The rich…

Background: It is recognized that individuals with Down's syndrome have a specific deficit in verbal short-term memory. On the other hand, non-verbal short-term memory seems to be preserved or even be a strong point for these persons. Nevertheless, the extent and specificity of the deficit must be determined. To do so, we carried out a research…

The present study investigated the mechanisms underlying perceptual compensation for assimilation in novel words. During training, participants learned canonical versions of novel spoken words (e.g., "decibot") presented in isolation. Following exposure to a second set of novel words the next day, participants carried out a phoneme…

We identified individuals with deficits in musical pitch recognition by screening a large random population using the Distorted Tunes Test (DTT), and enrolled individuals who had DTT scores in the lowest 10th percentile, classified as tune deaf. We examined phonological processing abilities in 35 tune deaf and 34 normal control individuals. Eight…

For bilinguals born in an English-speaking country or who arrive at a young age, English (L2) often becomes their dominant language by adulthood. This study examines whether such adult bilinguals show equivalent performance to monolingual English native speakers on three English auditory processing tasks: phonemic awareness, spelling-to-dictation…

Objective: To examine the underlying mechanisms of adults' intended caregiving responses to cry sounds in a behavioral genetic design and to investigate the role of cry pitch and perceived urgency in sensitive and harsh caregiving responses. Methods: The sample consisted of 184 adult twin pairs (18-69 years), including males and females, parents…

This study investigated the mental representation of music notation. Notational audiation is the ability to internally "hear" the music one is reading before physically hearing it performed on an instrument. In earlier studies, the authors claimed that this process engages music imagery contingent on subvocal silent singing. This study refines the…

Background: Integration of information from multiple sensory sources is an important prerequisite for successful social behavior, especially during face-to-face conversation. It has been suggested that communicative impairments among individuals with pervasive developmental disorders (PDD) might be caused by an inability to integrate synchronously…

This study assessed the ability of people with visual impairments to reliably detect oncoming traffic at crossing situations with no traffic control. In at least one condition, the participants could not hear vehicles to afford a safe crossing time when sound levels were as quiet as possible. Significant predictors of detection accounted for a…