Adaptive sensorimotor learning in speech production

 描述(由申请人提供)：感觉运动学习在所有熟练动作的获得和完善中起着关键作用，包括言语产生。从早期的胡言乱语到完全成熟的语音清晰度，中枢神经系统获取并更新复杂的运动到听觉转换的神经表示，从产生运动命令到声道运动和语音输出。此外，听觉-运动学习--学习和维持这种神经表征的过程--被认为在发育性言语障碍的病因中发挥着重要作用，如口吃和儿童言语失用。因此，这一系列的六个综合实验试图更好地理解言语感觉-运动学习，特别是听觉-运动学习的原理和机制。整个研究计划围绕两个短期目标而设计：(A)优化听觉-运动适应的速度和程度，以及(B)最小化去适应的速度和程度(感觉运动学习的衰退)。这些研究的发现还将阐明儿童时期听觉-运动学习的发展进程，以及儿童和成人在听觉-运动学习方面的差异。此外，鉴于听觉-运动适应研究的核心实验范式导致说话者在短时间内自动改变他们的语音输出，而不需要指示或不需要 这项拟议研究计划的一个长期目标是开发新的、计算机辅助的临床程序，通过系统地改变说话者的听觉反馈来诱导言语运动行为的适应性变化。因此，这项工作与公共卫生的直接相关性在于，所产生的知识将直接有助于深入 了解典型的语音发育，在整个生命周期内保持语音清晰度技能，以及潜在的发育性语音障碍的基本感觉运动机制，同时为治疗各种语音障碍的高度创新的临床技术铺平道路。

 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Sensorimotor learning plays a critical role in the acquisition and refining of all skilled movements, including speech production. From early babbling to fully mature speech articulation, the central nervous system acquires and updates neural representations of the intricate motor-to-auditory transformations that take place from the generation of motor commands to vocal tract movements and speech sound output. Moreover, auditory-motor learning - the process through which such neural representations are learned and maintained - is believed to play an important role in the etiology of developmental speech disorders such as stuttering and childhood apraxia of speech. This series of six integrated experiments therefore seeks to gain a better understanding of the principles and mechanisms involved in speech sensorimotor learning in general and in auditory-motor learning in particular. The overall program of research is designed around the dual short-term goals of (a) optimizing the rate and extent of auditory-motor adaptation, and (b) minimizing the rate and extent of de-adaptation (decay of sensorimotor learning). The findings from these studies will also elucidate the developmental progression of auditory-motor learning during childhood as well as differences in auditory-motor learning between children and adults. Furthermore, given that the core experimental paradigm for auditory-motor adaptation studies causes speakers to automatically alter their speech output in a short period of time, without instruction, and without effort, one long-term goal of the proposed research program is to develop novel, computer-assisted clinical procedures that induce adaptive changes in speech motor behavior by systematically altering the speaker's auditory feedback. Thus, this work's direct relevance to public health lies in the fact that the generated knowledge will contribute directly to an in-depth understanding of typical speech development, the maintenance of speech articulation skills throughout the lifespan, and fundamental sensorimotor mechanisms underlying developmental speech disorders, while simultaneously paving the way for highly innovative clinical techniques for the treatment of a wide variety of speech disorders.