M/EEG analysis of naturalistic stories: a review from speech to language processing

Abstract

M/EEG research using naturally spoken stories as stimuli has focused largely on speech and not language processing. The temporal resolution of M/EEG is a two-edged sword, allowing for the study of the fine acoustic structure of speech, yet easily overwhelmed by the temporal noise of variation in constituent length. Recent theories on the neural encoding of linguistic structure require the temporal resolution of M/EEG, yet suffer from confounds when studied on traditional, heavily controlled stimuli. Recent methodological advances allow for synthesising naturalistic designs and traditional, controlled designs into effective M/EEG research on naturalistic language. In this review, we highlight common threads throughout the at-times distinct research traditions of speech and language processing. We conclude by examining the tradeoffs and successes of three M/EEG studies on fully naturalistic language paradigms and the future directions they suggest.

Linguistic structure and meaning organize neural oscillations into a content-specific hierarchy

“…However, the degree to which the neural response encodes higher-level linguistic information beyond the syllable level is relatively poorly understood, and computational or mechanistic models that make clear predictions at the interface between speech processing and language processing beyond the syllable envelope are sparse (cf. Alday, 2019). In this study, we show that neural responses to linguistic structures are enhanced for the most structured and meaningful representations that are available at a given timescale.…”

“…Exploring in more detail why MI between brain and acoustic signal appears to be consistently highest at lower frequencies will be an interesting avenue for future research. To that end, we believe that studying naturalistic stimuli will further enhance our understanding of spoken language comprehension (Alday, 2019; see also Alexandrou et al, 2018).…”

“…Perhaps most obviously (although presumably limited by the resolution of timefrequency analysis), it would be interesting to investigate how "far" cue integration can be traced during more natural language comprehension situations (cf. Alday, 2019, Alexandrou et al, 2018. To what degree are higher-level linguistic cues, such as sentential, referential, contextual, or pragmatic information, encoded in the neural response?…”

Linguistic Structure and Meaning Organize Neural Oscillations into a Content-Specific Hierarchy

“…Perhaps most obviously (although presumably limited by the resolution of time-frequency analysis), it would be interesting to investigate how "far" cue integration can be traced during even more natural language comprehension situations (cf. Alday, 2019;Alexandrou et al, 2018). To what degree are higher-level linguistic cues, such as sentential, contextual, or pragmatic information, encoded in the neural response?…”

Spectral and Spatial Characteristics of the Activity of Brain Structures, Participating in the Perception and Production of Speech

“…В обзоре [36] рассмотрены две параллельные традиции в изучении лингвистической электрофизиологии со слуховой стимуляцией. Это обработка речи, которая сосредоточена в основном на колебательных реакциях на акустические аспекты раздражителя, и, понимание языка, в которой эксперимент сфокусирован на вызванной временной реакции и тщательном отслеживании по времени всех манипуляций.…”