Prelinguistic communication in congenitally blind infants

This paper presents arguments for considering the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) as a critical structure in intentional communication. Different facets of intentionality are discussed in relationship to this neural structure. The macrostructural and microstructural characteristics of ACC are proposed to sustain the uniqueness of its architecture, as an overlap region of cognitive, affective and motor components. At the functional level, roles played by this region in communication include social bonding in mammals, control of vocalization in humans, semantic and syntactic processing, and initiation of speech. The involvement of the anterior cingulate cortex in social cognition is suggested where, for infants, joint attention skills are considered both prerequisites of social cognition and prelinguistic communication acts. Since the intentional dimension of gestural communication seems to be connected to a region previously equipped for vocalization, ACC might well be a starting point for linguistic communication.

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The effect of congenital blindness on resting-state functional connectivity revisited

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-91976-9 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Maria J. S. Guerreiro ◽

Madita Linke ◽

Sunitha Lingareddy ◽

Ramesh Kekunnaya ◽

Brigitte Röder

Keyword(s):

Functional Connectivity ◽

Resting State ◽

Visual Experience ◽

Brain Regions ◽

State Condition ◽

Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽

Congenital Blindness ◽

Eyes Closed ◽

Congenitally Blind ◽

Eyes Open

AbstractLower resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) between ‘visual’ and non-‘visual’ neural circuits has been reported as a hallmark of congenital blindness. In sighted individuals, RSFC between visual and non-visual brain regions has been shown to increase during rest with eyes closed relative to rest with eyes open. To determine the role of visual experience on the modulation of RSFC by resting state condition—as well as to evaluate the effect of resting state condition on group differences in RSFC—, we compared RSFC between visual and somatosensory/auditory regions in congenitally blind individuals (n = 9) and sighted participants (n = 9) during eyes open and eyes closed conditions. In the sighted group, we replicated the increase of RSFC between visual and non-visual areas during rest with eyes closed relative to rest with eyes open. This was not the case in the congenitally blind group, resulting in a lower RSFC between ‘visual’ and non-‘visual’ circuits relative to sighted controls only in the eyes closed condition. These results indicate that visual experience is necessary for the modulation of RSFC by resting state condition and highlight the importance of considering whether sighted controls should be tested with eyes open or closed in studies of functional brain reorganization as a consequence of blindness.

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The role of visual experience for spatial numerical associations

Seeing and Perceiving ◽

10.1163/187847612x648486 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 25 (0) ◽

pp. 222 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Michael J. Proulx ◽

Achille Pasqualotto ◽

Shuichiro Taya

Keyword(s):

Visual Experience ◽

Opposite Effect ◽

Random Number Generation ◽

Number Line ◽

Mental Number Line ◽

Generation Task ◽

Congenitally Blind ◽

Left And Right ◽

The Right

The topographic representation of space interacts with the mental representation of number. Evidence for such number–space relations have been reported in both synaesthetic and non-synaesthetic participants. Thus far most studies have only examined related effects in sighted participants. For example, the mental number line increases in magnitude from left to right in sighted individuals (Loetscher et al., 2008, Curr. Biol.). What is unclear is whether this association arises from innate mechanisms or requires visual experience early in life to develop in this way. Here we investigated the role of visual experience for the left to right spatial numerical association using a random number generation task in congenitally blind, late blind, and blindfolded sighted participants. Participants orally generated numbers randomly whilst turning their head to the left and right. Sighted participants generated smaller numbers when they turned their head to the left than to the right, consistent with past results. In contrast, congenitally blind participants generated smaller numbers when they turned their head to the right than to the left, exhibiting the opposite effect. The results of the late blind participants showed an intermediate profile between that of the sighted and congenitally blind participants. Visual experience early in life is therefore necessary for the development of the spatial numerical association of the mental number line.

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Tool Selectivity in Left Occipitotemporal Cortex Develops without Vision

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/jocn_a_00411 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 25 (8) ◽

pp. 1225-1234 ◽

Cited By ~ 48

Author(s):

Marius V. Peelen ◽

Stefania Bracci ◽

Xueming Lu ◽

Chenxi He ◽

Alfonso Caramazza ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Functional Organization ◽

Auditory Task ◽

Anatomical Location ◽

Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽

Frontoparietal Network ◽

Congenitally Blind ◽

Occipitotemporal Cortex ◽

Auditory Tasks ◽

Tool Motion ◽

Selective Activity

Previous studies have provided evidence for a tool-selective region in left lateral occipitotemporal cortex (LOTC). This region responds selectively to pictures of tools and to characteristic visual tool motion. The present human fMRI study tested whether visual experience is required for the development of tool-selective responses in left LOTC. Words referring to tools, animals, and nonmanipulable objects were presented auditorily to 14 congenitally blind and 16 sighted participants. Sighted participants additionally viewed pictures of these objects. In whole-brain group analyses, sighted participants showed tool-selective activity in left LOTC in both visual and auditory tasks. Importantly, virtually identical tool-selective LOTC activity was found in the congenitally blind group performing the auditory task. Furthermore, both groups showed equally strong tool-selective activity for auditory stimuli in a tool-selective LOTC region defined by the picture-viewing task in the sighted group. Detailed analyses in individual participants showed significant tool-selective LOTC activity in 13 of 14 blind participants and 14 of 16 sighted participants. The strength and anatomical location of this activity were indistinguishable across groups. Finally, both blind and sighted groups showed significant resting state functional connectivity between left LOTC and a bilateral frontoparietal network. Together, these results indicate that tool-selective activity in left LOTC develops without ever having seen a tool or its motion. This finding puts constraints on the possible role that this region could have in tool processing and, more generally, provides new insights into the principles shaping the functional organization of OTC.

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Children With Differing Developmental Trajectories of Prelinguistic Communication Skills: Language and Working Memory at Age 5

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/2014_jslhr-l-13-0012 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 57 (3) ◽

pp. 1026-1039 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Sira Määttä ◽

Marja-Leena Laakso ◽

Asko Tolvanen ◽

Timo Ahonen ◽

Tuija Aro

Keyword(s):

At Risk ◽

Working Memory ◽

Language Impairment ◽

Developmental Trajectories ◽

Working Memory Capacity ◽

Risk Groups ◽

Memory Capacity ◽

Individual Level ◽

Prelinguistic Communication

Purpose In this article, the authors examine the developmental continuity from prelinguistic communication to kindergarten age in language and working memory capacity. Method Following work outlining 6 groups of children with different trajectories of early communication development (ECD; Määttä, Laakso, Tolvanen, Ahonen, & Aro, 2012), the authors examined their later development by psychometric assessment. Ninety-one children first assessed at ages 12–21 months completed a battery of language and working memory tests at age 5;3 (years;months). Results Two of the ECD groups previously identified as being at risk for language difficulties continued to show weaker performance at follow-up. Seventy-nine percent of the children with compromised language skills at follow-up were identified on the basis of the ECD groups, but the number of false positives was high. The 2 at-risk groups also differed significantly from the typically developing groups in the measures tapping working memory capacity. Conclusions In line with the dimensional view of language impairment, the accumulation of early delays predicted the amount of later difficulties; however, at the individual level, the prediction had rather low specificity. The results imply a strong link between language and working memory and call for further studies examining the early developmental interaction between language and memory.

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Comparison of Defense Mechanisms Utilized in Perception by Congenitally Blind and Sighted Respondents

Psychological Reports ◽

10.2466/pr0.1984.55.1.228 ◽

1984 ◽

Vol 55 (1) ◽

pp. 228-230

Author(s):

Sam Minskoff ◽

John M. Curtis

Keyword(s):

Defense Mechanisms ◽

Defense Mechanism ◽

Ego Defenses ◽

Congenitally Blind

The present study examined specific defense mechanisms involved in perceptions of congenitally blind and sighted respondents. The Defense Mechanism Inventory was given 30 blind and 30 sighted subjects, randomly selected. One-way analyses of variance on specific defenses indicated nonsignificant differences between the groups who tended to show comparable patterns of ego defenses. Findings suggest any discrepancies in perception between such groups are not likely based on differences in the use of various defense mechanisms as measured by the Defense Mechanism Inventory.

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Cognitive Mapping by the Blind

Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness ◽

10.1177/0145482x7807200801 ◽

1978 ◽

Vol 72 (8) ◽

pp. 297-301 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Steven M. Casey

Keyword(s):

High School ◽

High School Students ◽

Cognitive Mapping ◽

School Students ◽

Congenitally Blind ◽

Tactile Maps ◽

Blind Persons ◽

Partially Sighted ◽

Blind Students

In an effort to study the cognitive mapping abilities of blind persons, tactile maps of a school campus were made by ten congenitally blind and ten blindfolded partially sighted high school students. Although some blind students made well-organized and accurate maps of the campus, most of the maps made by the congenitally blind subjects were poorly organized and integrated as compared with maps made by the blindfolded partially sighted subjects. Blind persons exhibit varying methods for categorizing the elements of a large environment, and the method of cognitive mapping is believed to be related to how well a person can negotiate within the environment.

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Predicting Language Outcomes for Young Prelinguistic Children With Developmental Delay

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research ◽

10.1044/jslhr.4305.1061 ◽

2000 ◽

Vol 43 (5) ◽

pp. 1061-1071 ◽

Cited By ~ 43

Author(s):

Amy M. Calandrella ◽

M. Jeanne Wilcox

Keyword(s):

Developmental Delay ◽

Nonverbal Communication ◽

Receptive Language ◽

Language Outcomes ◽

Communication Behaviors ◽

Intentional Communication ◽

Symbolic Communication ◽

Prelinguistic Communication ◽

Language Outcome ◽

Natural Interactions

The purpose of this study was to examine potential relationships between children's prelinguistic communication behaviors and subsequent (12 months later) expressive and receptive language outcomes. Participants included 25 toddlers with developmental delay and their mothers. The dyads were observed during natural interactions at 6-month intervals over a 12-month period for a total of 3 observation points (O 1 , O 2 , O 3 ). Children's rate of nonverbal behavior that is often perceived as communication by adults was identified at O 1 and O 2 . In the investigation, the children's intentional nonverbal communication acts all included coordinated attention between the communication referent and the adult. The other types of prelinguistic communication behavior, termed gestural indicating behavior and social interaction signals, were produced without coordinated attention to the adult. Receptive and expressive language test scores and spontaneous word productions were analyzed at O 3 and served as outcome measures in regression analyses. Results indicated that rate of intentional nonverbal communication at O 1 was a predictor of spontaneous word productions at O 3 . At O 2 , rate of intentional communication and rate of gestural indicating behavior predicted subsequent language outcomes as measured by the Sequenced Inventory of Communication Development-Revised. The results are consistent with previous findings for intentional nonverbal communication that includes coordinated attention, but additionally demonstrate that prelinguistic behavior lacking coordinated attention also bears a relationship to subsequent language outcome. Discussion of observed patterns focuses on child and adult factors that may motivate the transition from prelinguistic to early symbolic communication.

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