Interaction between auditory and motor systems in speech perception
Department of Psychology, Speech and Hearing Research Center, Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Abstract
Based on the Motor Theory of speech perception, the interaction between the auditory and motor systems plays an essential role in speech perception. Since the Motor Theory was proposed, it has received remarkable attention in the field. However, each of the three hypotheses of the theory still needs further verification. In this review, we focus on how the auditory-motor anatomical and functional associations play a role in speech perception and discuss why previous studies could not reach an agreement and particularly whether the motor system involvement in speech perception is task-load dependent. Finally, we suggest that the function of the auditory-motor link is particularly useful for speech perception under adverse listening conditions and the further revised Motor Theory is a potential solution to the “cocktail-party” problem.
Keywords
auditory-motor interaction; Motor Theory of speech perception; motor cortex; “cocktail-party” problem.
