Tuning in to musical rhythms: Infants learn more readily than adults
Abstract
Domain-general tuning processes may guide the acquisition of perceptual knowledge in infancy. Here, we demonstrate that 12-month-old infants show an adult-like, culture-specific pattern of responding to musical rhythms, in contrast to the culture-general responding that is evident at 6 months of age. Nevertheless, brief exposure to foreign music enables 12-month-olds, but not adults, to perceive rhythmic distinctions in foreign musical contexts. These findings may indicate a sensitive period early in life for acquiring rhythm in particular or socially and biologically important structures more generally.
Acknowledgments
We thank Glenn Schellenberg, Scott Johnson, Annie Sheikh, Amit Shah, and Saba Ul-Haq. This work was supported by a Sage Fellowship from Cornell University (to E.E.H.) and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (S.E.T.).
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Copyright © 2005, The National Academy of Sciences.
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Received: May 23, 2005
Published online: August 16, 2005
Published in issue: August 30, 2005
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Acknowledgments
We thank Glenn Schellenberg, Scott Johnson, Annie Sheikh, Amit Shah, and Saba Ul-Haq. This work was supported by a Sage Fellowship from Cornell University (to E.E.H.) and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (S.E.T.).
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