Evidence for causal top-down frontal contributions to predictive processes in speech perception

Thomas E. Cope (), E. Sohoglu, W. Sedley, K. Patterson, P. S. Jones, J. Wiggins, Chris Dawson (), M. Grube, R. P. Carlyon, T. D. Griffiths, Matthew H. Davis and James B. Rowe
Additional contact information
Thomas E. Cope: University of Cambridge
E. Sohoglu: University of Cambridge
W. Sedley: Newcastle University
K. Patterson: University of Cambridge
P. S. Jones: University of Cambridge
J. Wiggins: University of Cambridge
M. Grube: Newcastle University
R. P. Carlyon: University of Cambridge
T. D. Griffiths: Newcastle University
Matthew H. Davis: University of Cambridge
James B. Rowe: University of Cambridge

Nature Communications, 2017, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Abstract Perception relies on the integration of sensory information and prior expectations. Here we show that selective neurodegeneration of human frontal speech regions results in delayed reconciliation of predictions in temporal cortex. These temporal regions were not atrophic, displayed normal evoked magnetic and electrical power, and preserved neural sensitivity to manipulations of sensory detail. Frontal neurodegeneration does not prevent the perceptual effects of contextual information; instead, prior expectations are applied inflexibly. The precision of predictions correlates with beta power, in line with theoretical models of the neural instantiation of predictive coding. Fronto-temporal interactions are enhanced while participants reconcile prior predictions with degraded sensory signals. Excessively precise predictions can explain several challenging phenomena in frontal aphasias, including agrammatism and subjective difficulties with speech perception. This work demonstrates that higher-level frontal mechanisms for cognitive and behavioural flexibility make a causal functional contribution to the hierarchical generative models underlying speech perception.

Date: 2017
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-017-01958-7 Abstract (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:8:y:2017:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-017-01958-7

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01958-7

Access Statistics for this article

Nature Communications is currently edited by Nathalie Le Bot, Enda Bergin and Fiona Gillespie

More articles in Nature Communications from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().