Advancing primate models of human auditory cognitive control

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Abstract The development of more powerful primate models of auditory cognitive control is critical for advancing understanding of the cognitive and neural systems underlying the capacity for human communication. Valid models depend on identification of which aspects of these systems are present in monkeys. The long-term goal of this work is to better understand the relations between auditory cognitive control in humans and primates, enhancing the utility of primate models for research on auditory-communicative disorders. The overall objective of this application is to identify some aspects of auditory cognitive control in humans that can be modeled in primates. The central working hypothesis is that the same experimental techniques used to establish visual cognitive control can also elucidate components of auditory cognitive control. The rationale is that valid behavioral models of auditory cognitive control in primates are foundational for studies of the relevant neural systems, and ultimately for developing and testing novel treatments for individuals with communication disorders. The central hypothesis will be tested by accomplishing three specific aims: (1) Use tests that are diagnostic of working memory to determine which components of human auditory working memory can be modeled in rhesus monkeys, (2) Assess cognitive control of auditory attention and decision-making in monkeys, and (3) Evaluate a putative neural substrate of auditory cognitive control using comparative studies across humans, orangutans, and monkeys. For the first aim, whether monkeys engage in active maintenance of information in auditory working memory will be tested using competing cognitive load and directed forgetting manipulations in auditory memory tests. For the second aim, control of auditory attention will be evaluated using tasks that require flexibly focusing auditory attention and filtering auditory distractors. Cognitive control of decision-making will be evaluated using tests of adaptive information-seeking. For the third aim, auditory cognitive abilities will be compared across monkeys, orangutans, and humans to evaluate the putative correlation between these skills and expansion of the dorsal auditory pathway. The proposed research is innovative because it uses novel tests of auditory working memory, attentional control, and adaptive decision-making that specifically dissociate these processes from non-controlled, passive, or automatic mechanisms. The work also achieves a systematic comparison of auditory memory across primates using equivalent tests. The proposed research is significant because it is expected to provide a robust foundation for future biomedical research on auditory-communicative deficits using proven primate models.