Understanding Emotional Tone in Speech
Author Information
Author(s): Marjolijn Hoekert, Leonie Bais, René S. Kahn, André Aleman
Primary Institution: BCN Neuroimaging Center, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
Hypothesis
Information would be processed in the right anterior superior temporal gyrus before being processed in the right fronto-parietal operculum.
Conclusion
Both the right fronto-parietal operculum and right anterior superior temporal gyrus are critical for emotional prosody perception at a relatively late time period after sentence onset.
Supporting Evidence
- Right-handed healthy subjects performed an emotional prosody task.
- Results showed a significant main effect of Time for right anterior superior temporal gyrus and right fronto-parietal operculum.
- The largest interference was observed half-way through the sentence.
- This effect was stronger for withdrawal emotions than for the approach emotion.
- An additional active control condition revealed stronger effects at the targeted regions compared to the control.
- No evidence was found for sequential processing of emotional prosodic information.
Takeaway
This study looked at how our brain understands emotions in speech. It found that two specific brain areas work together to help us figure out how someone feels based on their tone of voice.
Methodology
The study used triple-pulse repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) on healthy subjects while they performed an emotional prosody task.
Limitations
The study's findings may not generalize beyond the specific emotional tones tested and the sample size was relatively small.
Participant Demographics
14 healthy right-handed subjects aged 19 to 41, including 7 females.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.05
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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