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Linear Coding of Voice Onset Time

¹ University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, ² Boston University, ³ University of California, San Diego

Reprint requests should be sent to Richard E. Frye, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neurology, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, 7000 Fannin—UCT 2478, Houston, TX 77030, or via e-mail: Richard.E.Frye{at}uth.tmc.edu.

Voice onset time (VOT) provides an important auditory cue for recognizing spoken consonant–vowel syllables. Although changes in the neuromagnetic response to consonant–vowel syllables with different VOT have been examined, such experiments have only manipulated VOT with respect to voicing. We utilized the characteristics of a previously developed asymmetric VOT continuum [Liederman, J., Frye, R. E., McGraw Fisher, J., Greenwood, K., & Alexander, R. A temporally dynamic contextual effect that disrupts voice onset time discrimination of rapidly successive stimuli. Psychonomic Bulletin and Review, 12, 380–386, 2005] to determine if changes in the prominent M100 neuromagnetic response were linearly modulated by VOT. Eight right-handed, English-speaking, normally developing participants performed a VOT discrimination task during a whole-head neuromagnetic recording. The M100 was identified in the gradiometers overlying the right and left temporal cortices and single dipoles were fit to each M100 waveform. A repeated measures analysis of variance with post hoc contrast test for linear trend was used to determine whether characteristics of the M100 were linearly modulated by VOT. The morphology of the M100 gradiometer waveform and the peak latency of the dipole waveform were linearly modulated by VOT. This modulation was much greater in the left, as compared to the right, hemisphere. The M100 dipole moved in a linear fashion as VOT increased in both hemispheres, but along different axes in each hemisphere. This study suggests that VOT may linearly modulate characteristics of the M100, predominately in the left hemisphere, and suggests that the VOT of consonant–vowel syllables, instead of, or in addition to, voicing, should be examined in future experiments.