A developmental study of auditory preferences in infants with Down’s syndrome and non-handicapped infants when hearing familiar and unfamiliar voices singing nursery rhymes
A developmental study of auditory preferences in infants with Down’s syndrome and non-handicapped infants when hearing familiar and unfamiliar voices singing nursery rhymes
The auditory preferences of 20 non-handicapped infants and 20 infants with Down’s syndrome will be studied at the ages of 6 months and 12 months. A digital apparatus allowing infants to choose whether to listen to one of two auditory stimuli will be used as a measurement of their preferences. Sounds used will include two familiar voices; the mother and father of the child and in a second experiment one familiar voice, the mother, and one unfamiliar voice, a female not known to the child. At both ages, all infants will be measured highlighting ether they prefer listening to the familiar or unfamiliar voices significantly more. It is expected that at 6 months the Down’s syndrome infants will take longer to respond to the stimuli however along with the normal developing infants will show more interest for the familiar voices. However, as the infants reach 12 months non-handicapped infants may begin to show a significant increase to unfamiliar voices whereas, infants with Down’s syndrome are more likely to listen longer to familiar voices. Implications and applications for further research are discussed.
Introduction Down’s syndrome is a chromosomal condition that is caused by the presences of an extra copy of genetic material on the 21st chromosome. The condition was first founded by John Langdon Down in 1866. It is associated with intellectual disability and the degree of this can vary but it usually mild to moderate (Carr, 1995).
Jiang, Wu and Liu (1990) conducted a study on the early development of the brainstem auditory pathway in 14 infants with Down’s syndrome. The participant’s ages from 1 month to 3 years old. Findings highlighted all children within 2 years had elevated threshold in either one or both ears suggesting a high incidence of peripheral hearing deficits. Research
The auditory preferences of 20 non-handicapped infants and 20 infants with Down’s syndrome will be studied at the ages of 6 months and 12 months. A digital apparatus allowing infants to choose whether to listen to one of two auditory stimuli will be used as a measurement of their preferences. Sounds used will include two familiar voices; the mother and father of the child and in a second experiment one familiar voice, the mother, and one unfamiliar voice, a female not known to the child. At both ages, all infants will be measured highlighting ether they prefer listening to the familiar or unfamiliar voices significantly more. It is expected that at 6 months the Down’s syndrome infants will take longer to respond to the stimuli however along with the normal developing infants will show more interest for the familiar voices. However, as the infants reach 12 months non-handicapped infants may begin to show a significant increase to unfamiliar voices whereas, infants with Down’s syndrome are more likely to listen longer to familiar voices. Implications and applications for further research are discussed.
Introduction Down’s syndrome is a chromosomal condition that is caused by the presences of an extra copy of genetic material on the 21st chromosome. The condition was first founded by John Langdon Down in 1866. It is associated with intellectual disability and the degree of this can vary but it usually mild to moderate (Carr, 1995).
Jiang, Wu and Liu (1990) conducted a study on the early development of the brainstem auditory pathway in 14 infants with Down’s syndrome. The participant’s ages from 1 month to 3 years old. Findings highlighted all children within 2 years had elevated threshold in either one or both ears suggesting a high incidence of peripheral hearing deficits. Research
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