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Prenatal experience with low-frequency maternal voice sounds influences newborns' perception of female voices
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P NAT L EXPERI NCE WITH LOW-FREQU NCY MATERNAL VOICE SOUNDS INFLUENCES NEWBORNS t PERCEPTION OF FEMALE VOICES Melanie J. Spence & Anthony ~. DeCasper This study investigated whether prenata experience with low frequencies of the mater nal voice influences postnatal perception of female voices. Newborns t preferences were as sessed for unfiltered postnatal female voice or low-pass filtered femal~ voices which simulate intrauterine recordings. Eight infant heard filtered and unfiltered recordings of their mothers t voices while eight infants heard the same voice recordings which were unfamiliar to them. Infants were fitted with earphones and given a nonnutritive nipple. Periods of a 4-sec 400 Hz Tone and 4-sec No Tone alternated over the earphones in the ab sence of sucking. If infants sucked in the presence of the Tone, the tone stopped and a low-pass filtered voice recording was presented until sucking stopped. If infants sucked when No Tone was present, an unfiltered recorded version of the voice was presented contingent on sucking. Discriminative stimulus-reinforcer pairings were counterbalanced in each group. Filtered and unfiltered versions of maternal voices were equally reinforcing for infants while infants presented recordings of unfamiliar voices preferred the unfiltered version. Low-pass filtered versions of maternal voices were more reinforcing than low-pass recordings of unfamiliar voices. Th~se findings support the view that prenatal experience with low-frequency characteristics of the maternal voice influences the newbornts perception of the voice.
P NAT L EXPERI NCE WITH LOW-FREQU NCY MATERNAL VOICE SOUNDS INFLUENCES NEWBORNS t PERCEPTION OF FEMALE VOICES Melanie J. Spence & Anthony ~. DeCasper This study investigated whether prenata experience with low frequencies of the mater nal voice influences postnatal perception of female voices. Newborns t preferences were as sessed for unfiltered postnatal female voice or low-pass filtered femal~ voices which simulate intrauterine recordings. Eight infant heard filtered and unfiltered recordings of their mothers t voices while eight infants heard the same voice recordings which were unfamiliar to them. Infants were fitted with earphones and given a nonnutritive nipple. Periods of a 4-sec 400 Hz Tone and 4-sec No Tone alternated over the earphones in the ab sence of sucking. If infants sucked in the presence of the Tone, the tone stopped and a low-pass filtered voice recording was presented until sucking stopped. If infants sucked when No Tone was present, an unfiltered recorded version of the voice was presented contingent on sucking. Discriminative stimulus-reinforcer pairings were counterbalanced in each group. Filtered and unfiltered versions of maternal voices were equally reinforcing for infants while infants presented recordings of unfamiliar voices preferred the unfiltered version. Low-pass filtered versions of maternal voices were more reinforcing than low-pass recordings of unfamiliar voices. Th~se findings support the view that prenatal experience with low-frequency characteristics of the maternal voice influences the newbornts perception of the voice.