Browsing by Author "Fifer, Joanne"

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    The Interplay Between Multisensory Associative Learning and IQ in Children
    (Society for Research in Child Development, 2019-01) Ayla, Barutchu; Fifer, Joanne; Shivdasani, Mohit; Crewther, Sheila; Paolini, Antonio
    This study assessed the developmental profile of unisensory and multisensory processes, and their contribution to children's intellectual abilities (8- and 11-year olds, N = 38, compared to adults, N = 19) using a simple audiovisual detection task and three incidental associative learning tasks with different sensory signals: visual-verbal with pseudowords, novel audiovisual, and visual-visual. The level of immaturity throughout childhood was dependent on both, the sensory signal type and the task. Associative learning was significantly enhanced with verbal sounds, compared to novel audiovisual and unisensory visual learning. Visual-verbal learning was also the best predictor of children's general intellectual abilities. The results demonstrate a separate developmental trajectory for visual and verbal multisensory processes and independent contributions to the development of cognitive abilities throughout childhood.
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    The Interplay Between Multisensory Associative Learning and IQ in Children
    (John Wiley & Sons, 2019-01) Barutchu, Ayla; Fifer, Joanne; Shivdasani, Mohit; Crewther, Sheila; Paolini, Antonio
    This study assessed the developmental profile of unisensory and multisensory processes, and their contribution to children's intellectual abilities (8- and 11-year olds, N = 38, compared to adults, N = 19) using a simple audiovisual detection task and three incidental associative learning tasks with different sensory signals: visual-verbal with pseudowords, novel audiovisual, and visual-visual. The level of immaturity throughout childhood was dependent on both, the sensory signal type and the task. Associative learning was significantly enhanced with verbal sounds, compared to novel audiovisual and unisensory visual learning. Visual-verbal learning was also the best predictor of children's general intellectual abilities. The results demonstrate a separate developmental trajectory for visual and verbal multisensory processes and independent contributions to the development of cognitive abilities throughout childhood.
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    Multisensory perception and attention in school-age children
    (Elsevier, Inc., 2019-01) Barutchu, Ayla; Toohey, Sarah; Shivdasani, Mohit; Fifer, Joanne; Crewther, Sheila; Grayden, David; Paolini, Antonio
    Although it is well known that attention can modulate multisensory processes in adults and infants, this relationship has not been investigated in school-age children. Attention abilities of 53 children (ages 7-13years) were assessed using three subscales of the Test of Everyday Attention for Children (TEA-Ch): visuospatial attention (Sky Search [SS]), auditory sustained attention (Score), and audiovisual dual task (SSDT, where the SS and Score tasks are performed simultaneously). Multisensory processes were assessed using the McGurk effect (a verbal illusion where speech perception is altered by vision) and the Stream-Bounce (SB) effect (a nonverbal illusion where visual perception is altered by sound). The likelihood of perceiving both multisensory illusions tended to increase with age. The McGurk effect was significantly more pronounced in children who scored high on the audiovisual dual attention indices (SSDT). In contrast, the SB effect was more pronounced in children with higher sustained auditory attention abilities as assessed by the Score index. These relationships between attention and the multisensory illusory percepts could not be explained solely by age or children's intellectual abilities. This study suggests that the interplay between attention and multisensory processing depends on both the nature of the multisensory task and the type of attention needed to effectively merge information across the senses.
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    Multisensory perception and attention in school-age children
    (Elsevier Inc, 2019-01) Ayla, Barutchu; Toohey, Sarah; Shivdasani, Mohit; Fifer, Joanne; Crewther, Sheila; Grayden, David; Paolini, Antonio
    Although it is well known that attention can modulate multisensory processes in adults and infants, this relationship has not been investigated in school-age children. Attention abilities of 53 children (ages 7-13years) were assessed using three subscales of the Test of Everyday Attention for Children (TEA-Ch): visuospatial attention (Sky Search [SS]), auditory sustained attention (Score), and audiovisual dual task (SSDT, where the SS and Score tasks are performed simultaneously). Multisensory processes were assessed using the McGurk effect (a verbal illusion where speech perception is altered by vision) and the Stream-Bounce (SB) effect (a nonverbal illusion where visual perception is altered by sound). The likelihood of perceiving both multisensory illusions tended to increase with age. The McGurk effect was significantly more pronounced in children who scored high on the audiovisual dual attention indices (SSDT). In contrast, the SB effect was more pronounced in children with higher sustained auditory attention abilities as assessed by the Score index. These relationships between attention and the multisensory illusory percepts could not be explained solely by age or children's intellectual abilities. This study suggests that the interplay between attention and multisensory processing depends on both the nature of the multisensory task and the type of attention needed to effectively merge information across the senses.
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    The relationship between multisensory integration and IQ in children
    (American Psychological Association, 2010-12-13) Barutchu, Ayla; Crewther, Sheila; Fifer, Joanne; Shivdasani, Mohit; Innes-Brown, Hamish; Toohey, Sarah; Danaher, Jaclyn; Paolini, Antonio
    It is well accepted that multisensory integration has a facilitative effect on perceptual and motor processes, evolutionarily enhancing the chance of survival of many species, including humans. Yet, there is a limited understanding of the relationship between multisensory processes, environmental noise and children’s cognitive abilities. Thus, this study investigated the relationship between multisensory integration, auditory background noise and the general intellectual abilities of school age children (N = 88, M age = 9 years, 7 months) using a simple audiovisual detection paradigm. We provide evidence that children with enhanced multisensory integration in quiet and noisy conditions are likely to score above average on the full-scale Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-IV). Conversely, ~ 45% of tested children, with relatively low verbal and non-verbal intellectual abilities, showed reduced multisensory integration in either quiet or noise. Interestingly, ~ 20% of children showed improved multisensory integration abilities in the presence of auditory background noise. The findings of the present study suggest that stable and consistent multisensory integration in quiet and noisy environments is associated with the development of optimal general intellectual abilities. Further theoretical implications are discussed.