How Surface Features of Sounds Influence Memory for Global Auditory Patterns

这个项目调查了外显记忆中与年龄相关的变化，外显记忆指的是对信息或经验的有意识回忆。外显记忆包含潜在的抽象或要点(例如，单词、想法或旋律)以及表面特征(例如，音节、音高、响度)。这项拟议的研究将使用音乐模式来调查声音模式的表面特征(如特定的声音或乐器)和对这些模式的全局特征(如旋律)的记忆之间的关系。三个实验将比较成人、学龄儿童和婴儿对最初通过声音或在不同乐器上演奏的旋律的记忆。原则上，特定的声音品质(声音或各种乐器)可以产生比其他声音更持久的心理表征，因为它们对动机、情绪、意象或运动激活的影响。由于儿童早期的声音非常突出，各种声音质量的结果与年龄相关的差异是可以预料的。另外两项实验将确定当音质(声音或乐器)在初始暴露和随后的识别测试之间发生变化时，成年人和儿童对以前听到的旋律的识别是否会受到不利影响。尽管对这个问题进行了初步研究，但还没有考虑到有声和非发声声音在编码和存储方面存在重要差异的可能性。后续研究将考虑声音质量对语言材料记忆的影响。这项研究计划的结果有望增加我们对听觉记忆的理解，并阐明优化一生学习的潜在方法，尤其是在早年。

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.