How Surface Features of Sounds Influence Memory for Global Auditory Patterns

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This project investigates age-related changes in explicit memory, which refers to the conscious recollection of information or experiences. An explicit memory contains an underlying abstraction, or gist (e.g., word, idea, or melody), as well as surface characteristics (e.g., syllable, pitch, loudness). The proposed research will use musical patterns to investigate relations between surface features of sound patterns such as specific voices or instruments and memory for global features of those patterns such as melodies. Three experiments will compare adults', school-age children's, and infants' memory for melodies that were initially heard vocally or played on different instruments. In principle, specific sound qualities (voices or various instruments) could lead to mental representations that are more enduring than others by virtue of their effects on motivation, mood, imagery, or motor activation. Age-related differences in the consequences of various sound qualities are expected because of the enormous salience of the voice in early childhood. Two further experiments will ascertain whether adults' and children's recognition of previously heard melodies is affected adversely when the sound quality (voice or instrument) changes between initial exposure and subsequent recognition testing. Despite preliminary research on this question, there has been no consideration of the possibility of important differences in the encoding and storage of vocal and non-vocal sounds. Follow-up research will consider the effects of sound quality on memory for verbal material. The results of this research program are expected to increase our understanding of auditory memory and to shed light on potential means of optimizing learning throughout the lifespan, but most especially in the early years.