Mireia Hernández - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Mireia Hernández

Bilingualism: Language and Cognition

According to the “reduced emotionality hypothesis”, we are less emotionally driven when reasoning... more According to the “reduced emotionality hypothesis”, we are less emotionally driven when reasoning in a foreign language (FL) than in a native language (NL). We examined whether this foreign language effect (FLe) extends to the way we perceive motivational quotes (i.e., encouraging slogans conveying a profound and inspirational message): we expected FL participants to rate motivational quotes as less profound than NL participants. Strikingly, we observed the opposite: FL participants found motivational quotes more profound than NL participants, even after controlling for potential confounders (e.g., IQ, reasoning style). Both FL and NL participants gave similarly low profundity ratings to pseudo-profound bullshit sentences (i.e., meaningless sentences sounding profound), indicating that the message must be meaningful for the FLe to arise. We propose that, like space or time, language could promote psychological distance. This favours a focus on the background of a message to indicate...

Revista Electrónica Complutense de Investigación en Educación Musical, 2020

espanolEl test de Jake Mandell (JMT) es un test online disenado para evaluar la discriminacion to... more espanolEl test de Jake Mandell (JMT) es un test online disenado para evaluar la discriminacion tonal en la poblacion normal. El test esta disponible online desde 2006, pero no se han publicado datos psicometricos. La presente investigacion fue disenada para proporcionar datos de validez y fiabilidad para este test. El estudio 1 se realizo en estudiantes universitarios, y el rendimiento en el JMT se comparo con las pruebas de deteccion online denominadas AMUSIA. Las correlaciones fueron altas con los subtests de AMUSIA, pero especialmente con el de discriminacion de tonos. El estudio 2 se realizo en ninos, y el JMT se comparo con diferentes pruebas de habilidades musicales. El JMT mostro una buena relacion con el subtest de discriminacion de tono e imitacion de ritmo, pero especialmente con la puntuacion global de las habilidades musicales. Ademas, el test mostro una buena fiabilidad test-retest al cabo de un ano. Finalmente, la validacion externa del JMT se obtuvo al senalar que los...

En esta tesis se examina de forma empirica el posible impacto del bilinguismo sobre el control ej... more En esta tesis se examina de forma empirica el posible impacto del bilinguismo sobre el control ejecutivo, referido como el compendio de funciones cognitivas superiores que permiten al individuo adaptar la conducta en funcion de objetivos concretos. En esta tesis el termino "efectos colaterales del bilinguismo" hace referencia a este posible impacto. Esta cuestion acerca de los posibles efectos colaterales del bilinguismo sobre el control ejecutivo se basa en la necesidad de los hablantes bilingues de controlar sus dos lenguas durante la produccion del habla. La hipotesis general es que, los bilingues necesitan ejercer mas control ejecutivo que los monolingues durante la produccion del habla para evitar interferencia entre sus dos lenguas. Por tanto, los bilingues contarian con un entrenamiento extra, en relacion a los monolingues, para el control ejecutivo en general. En otras palabras, el hecho de controlar dos lenguas continuamente haria que los bilingues desarrollaran p...

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 2014

Verbs and nouns are fundamental units of language, but their neural instantiation remains poorly ... more Verbs and nouns are fundamental units of language, but their neural instantiation remains poorly understood. Neuropsychological research has shown that nouns and verbs can be damaged independently of each other, and neuroimaging research has found that several brain regions respond differentially to the two word classes. However, the semantic–lexical properties of verbs and nouns that drive these effects remain unknown. Here we show that the most likely candidate is predication: a core lexical feature involved in binding constituent arguments (boy, candies) into a unified syntactic–semantic structure expressing a proposition (the boy likes the candies). We used functional neuroimaging to test whether the intrinsic “predication-building” function of verbs is what drives the verb–noun distinction in the brain. We first identified verb-preferring regions with a localizer experiment including verbs and nouns. Then, we examined whether these regions are sensitive to transitivity—an index...

Language, Cognition and Neuroscience, 2021

The Jake Mandell Tone Deaf Test (JMT) is an online measure designed to evaluate pitch discriminat... more The Jake Mandell Tone Deaf Test (JMT) is an online measure designed to evaluate pitch discrimination in the normal population. The test has been available online since 2006, but no psychometric data have been published. The present research was designed to provide validity and reliability data for this test. Study 1 was conducted in university students, and the performance on the JMT was compared to the AMUSIA online screening tests. Correlations were high with the subtests of the AMUSIA online screening tests, but especially with the Tone discrimination test. Study 2 was conducted in children, and the JMT was compared to different tests of musical abilities. The JMT showed a good relationship with the Tone Discrimination and Rhythm Imitation subtest, but especially with the global score of musical abilities. In addition, the test showed good one-year test-retest reliability. Finally, external validation of the JMT was obtained by noting that musicians obtained higher scores than no...

Brain Structure and Function, 2020

Neuropsychologia, 2020

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

The Jake Mandell Tone Deaf Test (JMT) is an online measure designed to evaluate pitch discriminat... more The Jake Mandell Tone Deaf Test (JMT) is an online measure designed to evaluate pitch discrimination in the normal population. The test has been available online since 2006, but no psychometric data have been published. The present research was designed to provide validity and reliability data for this test. Study 1 was conducted in university students, and the performance on the JMT was compared to the AMUSIA online screening tests. Correlations were high with the subtests of the AMUSIA online screening tests, but especially with the Tone discrimination test. Study 2 was conducted in children, and the JMT was compared to different tests of musical abilities. The JMT showed a good relationship with the Tone Discrimination and Rhythm Imitation subtest, but especially with the global score of musical abilities. In addition, the test showed good one-year test-retest reliability. Finally, external validation of the JMT was obtained by noting that musicians obtained higher scores than no...

Human Brain Mapping, 2020

Music processing and right hemispheric language lateralization share a common network in the righ... more Music processing and right hemispheric language lateralization share a common network in the right auditory cortex and its frontal connections. Given that the development of hemispheric language dominance takes place over several years, this study tested whether musicianship could increase the probability of observing right language dominance in left-handers. Using a classic fMRI language paradigm, results showed that atypical lateralization was more predominant in musicians (40%) than in nonmusicians (5%). Comparison of left-handers with typical left and atypical right lateralization revealed that: (a) atypical cases presented a thicker right pars triangularis and more gyrified left Heschl's gyrus; and (b) the right pars triangularis of atypical cases showed a stronger intra-hemispheric functional connectivity with the right angular gyrus, but a weaker interhemispheric functional connectivity with part of the left Broca's area. Thus, musicianship is the first known factor related to a higher prevalence of atypical language dominance in healthy left-handed individuals. We suggest that differences in the frontal and temporal cortex might act as shared predisposing factors to both musicianship and atypical language lateralization.

Brain Structure and Function, 2020

Individual differences in pitch discrimination have been associated with the volume of both the b... more Individual differences in pitch discrimination have been associated with the volume of both the bilateral Heschl's gyrus and the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). However, most of these studies used samples composed of individuals with different amounts of musical training. Here, we investigated the relationship between pitch discrimination and individual differences in the gray matter (GM) volume of these brain structures in 32 adult musicians, 28 adult non-musicians, and 32 children without musical training. The results showed that (i) the individuals without musical training (whether children or adults) who were better at pitch discrimination had greater volume of auditory regions, whereas (ii) musicians with better pitch discrimination had greater volume of the IFG. These results suggest that the relationship between pitch discrimination and the volume of auditory regions is innately established early in life, and that musical training modulates the volume of the IFG, probably improving audio-motor connectivity. This is the first study to detect a relationship between pitch discrimination ability and GM volume before beginning any musical training in children and adults.

Psychological Science, 2019

Individual differences in the level of pleasure induced by music have been associated with the re... more Individual differences in the level of pleasure induced by music have been associated with the response of the striatum and differences in functional connectivity between the striatum and the auditory cortex. In this study, we tested whether individual differences in music reward are related to the structure of the striatum and the ability to discriminate pitch. We acquired a 3-D magnetization-prepared rapid-acquisition gradient-echo image for 32 musicians and 26 nonmusicians who completed a music-reward questionnaire and a test of pitch discrimination. The analysis of both groups together showed that sensitivity to music reward correlated negatively with the volume of both the caudate and nucleus accumbens and correlated positively with pitch-discrimination abilities. Moreover, musicianship, pitch discrimination, and caudate volume significantly predicted individual differences in music reward. These results are consistent with the proposal that individual differences in music rewa...

Neuropsychologia, 2020

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

Human Brain Mapping, 2020

Music processing and right hemispheric language lateralization share a common network in the righ... more Music processing and right hemispheric language lateralization share a common network in the right auditory cortex and its frontal connections. Given that the development of hemispheric language dominance takes place over several years, this study tested whether musicianship could increase the probability of observing right language dominance in left-handers. Using a classic fMRI language paradigm, results showed that atypical lateralization was more predominant in musicians (40%) than in nonmusicians (5%). Comparison of left-handers with typical left and atypical right lateralization revealed that: (a) atypical cases presented a thicker right pars triangularis and more gyrified left Heschl's gyrus; and (b) the right pars triangularis of atypical cases showed a stronger intra-hemispheric functional connectivity with the right angular gyrus, but a weaker interhemispheric functional connectivity with part of the left Broca's area. Thus, musicianship is the first known factor related to a higher prevalence of atypical language dominance in healthy left-handed individuals. We suggest that differences in the frontal and temporal cortex might act as shared predisposing factors to both musicianship and atypical language lateralization.

Frontiers in psychology, 2018

The Supplementary Motor Area (SMA)-located in the superior and medial aspects of the superior fro... more The Supplementary Motor Area (SMA)-located in the superior and medial aspects of the superior frontal gyrus-is a preferential site of certain brain tumors and arteriovenous malformations, which often provoke the so-called SMA syndrome. The bulk of the literature studying this syndrome has focused on two of its most apparent symptoms: contralateral motor and speech deficits. Surprisingly, little attention has been given to working memory (WM) even though neuroimaging studies have implicated the SMA in this cognitive process. Given its relevance for higher-order functions, our main goal was to examine whether WM is compromised in SMA lesions. We also asked whether WM deficits might be reducible to processing speed (PS) difficulties. Given the connectivity of the SMA with prefrontal regions related to executive control (EC), as a secondary goal we examined whether SMA lesions also hampered EC. To this end, we tested 12 patients with lesions involving the left (i.e., the dominant) SMA. ...

Journal of Neurolinguistics, 2017

In the context of bilingual research, little is known about the effects of neurodegenerative diso... more In the context of bilingual research, little is known about the effects of neurodegenerative disorders (NDs) on the processing of two languages in a bilingual. In a recent cross-sectional study, we showed that Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) had similar effects on lexico-semantic processes in the two languages of highly proficient bilinguals (Costa et al., Neuropsychologia, 2012, 50, 740-53). In the present longitudinal study, we extend this finding by looking at the pattern of language deterioration over time in the same population of Catalan-Spanish bilingual patients. All the participants completed three language-processing tasks (picture naming, word translation and word comprehension), both in their dominant (L1) and non-dominant (L2) language. At one year, the final group was made up of 50 patients: 15 with MCI and 35 with AD. For AD but not MCI, the language deterioration over time was the same in both languages, as previously reported in the cross-sectional study. The results are discussed in the frame of the hypothesis of shared lexico-semantic processing in highly proficient bilinguals and the influence of executive control deficits in language production.

Psychological Science, 2019

Individual differences in the level of pleasure induced by music have been associated with the re... more Individual differences in the level of pleasure induced by music have been associated with the response of the striatum and differences in functional connectivity between the striatum and the auditory cortex. In this study, we tested whether individual differences in music reward are related to the structure of the striatum and the ability to discriminate pitch. We acquired a 3-D magnetization-prepared rapid-acquisition gradient-echo image for 32 musicians and 26 nonmusicians who completed a music-reward questionnaire and a test of pitch discrimination. The analysis of both groups together showed that sensitivity to music reward correlated negatively with the volume of both the caudate and nucleus accumbens and correlated positively with pitch-discrimination abilities. Moreover, musicianship, pitch discrimination, and caudate volume significantly predicted individual differences in music reward. These results are consistent with the proposal that individual differences in music rewa...

Language, Cognition and Neuroscience, 2016

Native speakers are sensitive to the frequencies of multiword phrases: they are faster to process... more Native speakers are sensitive to the frequencies of multiword phrases: they are faster to process higher frequency phrases, after controlling for all part frequencies (e.g., high: don't have to worry vs. low: don't have to wait). Here, we ask whether intermediateadvanced late (English) learners are also sensitive to the distributional properties of large language units: four-word combinations. Using a phrasal-decision task, we show that learners process multiword phrase frequency like natives do. This is not restricted to higher frequency phrases, but occurs across the frequency continuum: as natives, learners show multiword frequency effects even when comparing a low frequency phrase to a higher (but still low) frequency phrase. In addition, we show that the effect is not modulated by the type of English exposure (immersion vs. classroom). These results indicate that late language users develop sensitivity to distributional properties of large language units at native-like level.

Bilingualism: Language and Cognition

According to the “reduced emotionality hypothesis”, we are less emotionally driven when reasoning... more According to the “reduced emotionality hypothesis”, we are less emotionally driven when reasoning in a foreign language (FL) than in a native language (NL). We examined whether this foreign language effect (FLe) extends to the way we perceive motivational quotes (i.e., encouraging slogans conveying a profound and inspirational message): we expected FL participants to rate motivational quotes as less profound than NL participants. Strikingly, we observed the opposite: FL participants found motivational quotes more profound than NL participants, even after controlling for potential confounders (e.g., IQ, reasoning style). Both FL and NL participants gave similarly low profundity ratings to pseudo-profound bullshit sentences (i.e., meaningless sentences sounding profound), indicating that the message must be meaningful for the FLe to arise. We propose that, like space or time, language could promote psychological distance. This favours a focus on the background of a message to indicate...

Revista Electrónica Complutense de Investigación en Educación Musical, 2020

espanolEl test de Jake Mandell (JMT) es un test online disenado para evaluar la discriminacion to... more espanolEl test de Jake Mandell (JMT) es un test online disenado para evaluar la discriminacion tonal en la poblacion normal. El test esta disponible online desde 2006, pero no se han publicado datos psicometricos. La presente investigacion fue disenada para proporcionar datos de validez y fiabilidad para este test. El estudio 1 se realizo en estudiantes universitarios, y el rendimiento en el JMT se comparo con las pruebas de deteccion online denominadas AMUSIA. Las correlaciones fueron altas con los subtests de AMUSIA, pero especialmente con el de discriminacion de tonos. El estudio 2 se realizo en ninos, y el JMT se comparo con diferentes pruebas de habilidades musicales. El JMT mostro una buena relacion con el subtest de discriminacion de tono e imitacion de ritmo, pero especialmente con la puntuacion global de las habilidades musicales. Ademas, el test mostro una buena fiabilidad test-retest al cabo de un ano. Finalmente, la validacion externa del JMT se obtuvo al senalar que los...

En esta tesis se examina de forma empirica el posible impacto del bilinguismo sobre el control ej... more En esta tesis se examina de forma empirica el posible impacto del bilinguismo sobre el control ejecutivo, referido como el compendio de funciones cognitivas superiores que permiten al individuo adaptar la conducta en funcion de objetivos concretos. En esta tesis el termino "efectos colaterales del bilinguismo" hace referencia a este posible impacto. Esta cuestion acerca de los posibles efectos colaterales del bilinguismo sobre el control ejecutivo se basa en la necesidad de los hablantes bilingues de controlar sus dos lenguas durante la produccion del habla. La hipotesis general es que, los bilingues necesitan ejercer mas control ejecutivo que los monolingues durante la produccion del habla para evitar interferencia entre sus dos lenguas. Por tanto, los bilingues contarian con un entrenamiento extra, en relacion a los monolingues, para el control ejecutivo en general. En otras palabras, el hecho de controlar dos lenguas continuamente haria que los bilingues desarrollaran p...

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience, 2014

Verbs and nouns are fundamental units of language, but their neural instantiation remains poorly ... more Verbs and nouns are fundamental units of language, but their neural instantiation remains poorly understood. Neuropsychological research has shown that nouns and verbs can be damaged independently of each other, and neuroimaging research has found that several brain regions respond differentially to the two word classes. However, the semantic–lexical properties of verbs and nouns that drive these effects remain unknown. Here we show that the most likely candidate is predication: a core lexical feature involved in binding constituent arguments (boy, candies) into a unified syntactic–semantic structure expressing a proposition (the boy likes the candies). We used functional neuroimaging to test whether the intrinsic “predication-building” function of verbs is what drives the verb–noun distinction in the brain. We first identified verb-preferring regions with a localizer experiment including verbs and nouns. Then, we examined whether these regions are sensitive to transitivity—an index...

Language, Cognition and Neuroscience, 2021

The Jake Mandell Tone Deaf Test (JMT) is an online measure designed to evaluate pitch discriminat... more The Jake Mandell Tone Deaf Test (JMT) is an online measure designed to evaluate pitch discrimination in the normal population. The test has been available online since 2006, but no psychometric data have been published. The present research was designed to provide validity and reliability data for this test. Study 1 was conducted in university students, and the performance on the JMT was compared to the AMUSIA online screening tests. Correlations were high with the subtests of the AMUSIA online screening tests, but especially with the Tone discrimination test. Study 2 was conducted in children, and the JMT was compared to different tests of musical abilities. The JMT showed a good relationship with the Tone Discrimination and Rhythm Imitation subtest, but especially with the global score of musical abilities. In addition, the test showed good one-year test-retest reliability. Finally, external validation of the JMT was obtained by noting that musicians obtained higher scores than no...

Brain Structure and Function, 2020

Neuropsychologia, 2020

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

The Jake Mandell Tone Deaf Test (JMT) is an online measure designed to evaluate pitch discriminat... more The Jake Mandell Tone Deaf Test (JMT) is an online measure designed to evaluate pitch discrimination in the normal population. The test has been available online since 2006, but no psychometric data have been published. The present research was designed to provide validity and reliability data for this test. Study 1 was conducted in university students, and the performance on the JMT was compared to the AMUSIA online screening tests. Correlations were high with the subtests of the AMUSIA online screening tests, but especially with the Tone discrimination test. Study 2 was conducted in children, and the JMT was compared to different tests of musical abilities. The JMT showed a good relationship with the Tone Discrimination and Rhythm Imitation subtest, but especially with the global score of musical abilities. In addition, the test showed good one-year test-retest reliability. Finally, external validation of the JMT was obtained by noting that musicians obtained higher scores than no...

Human Brain Mapping, 2020

Music processing and right hemispheric language lateralization share a common network in the righ... more Music processing and right hemispheric language lateralization share a common network in the right auditory cortex and its frontal connections. Given that the development of hemispheric language dominance takes place over several years, this study tested whether musicianship could increase the probability of observing right language dominance in left-handers. Using a classic fMRI language paradigm, results showed that atypical lateralization was more predominant in musicians (40%) than in nonmusicians (5%). Comparison of left-handers with typical left and atypical right lateralization revealed that: (a) atypical cases presented a thicker right pars triangularis and more gyrified left Heschl's gyrus; and (b) the right pars triangularis of atypical cases showed a stronger intra-hemispheric functional connectivity with the right angular gyrus, but a weaker interhemispheric functional connectivity with part of the left Broca's area. Thus, musicianship is the first known factor related to a higher prevalence of atypical language dominance in healthy left-handed individuals. We suggest that differences in the frontal and temporal cortex might act as shared predisposing factors to both musicianship and atypical language lateralization.

Brain Structure and Function, 2020

Individual differences in pitch discrimination have been associated with the volume of both the b... more Individual differences in pitch discrimination have been associated with the volume of both the bilateral Heschl's gyrus and the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG). However, most of these studies used samples composed of individuals with different amounts of musical training. Here, we investigated the relationship between pitch discrimination and individual differences in the gray matter (GM) volume of these brain structures in 32 adult musicians, 28 adult non-musicians, and 32 children without musical training. The results showed that (i) the individuals without musical training (whether children or adults) who were better at pitch discrimination had greater volume of auditory regions, whereas (ii) musicians with better pitch discrimination had greater volume of the IFG. These results suggest that the relationship between pitch discrimination and the volume of auditory regions is innately established early in life, and that musical training modulates the volume of the IFG, probably improving audio-motor connectivity. This is the first study to detect a relationship between pitch discrimination ability and GM volume before beginning any musical training in children and adults.

Psychological Science, 2019

Individual differences in the level of pleasure induced by music have been associated with the re... more Individual differences in the level of pleasure induced by music have been associated with the response of the striatum and differences in functional connectivity between the striatum and the auditory cortex. In this study, we tested whether individual differences in music reward are related to the structure of the striatum and the ability to discriminate pitch. We acquired a 3-D magnetization-prepared rapid-acquisition gradient-echo image for 32 musicians and 26 nonmusicians who completed a music-reward questionnaire and a test of pitch discrimination. The analysis of both groups together showed that sensitivity to music reward correlated negatively with the volume of both the caudate and nucleus accumbens and correlated positively with pitch-discrimination abilities. Moreover, musicianship, pitch discrimination, and caudate volume significantly predicted individual differences in music reward. These results are consistent with the proposal that individual differences in music rewa...

Neuropsychologia, 2020

This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the ad... more This is a PDF file of an article that has undergone enhancements after acceptance, such as the addition of a cover page and metadata, and formatting for readability, but it is not yet the definitive version of record. This version will undergo additional copyediting, typesetting and review before it is published in its final form, but we are providing this version to give early visibility of the article. Please note that, during the production process, errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain.

Human Brain Mapping, 2020

Music processing and right hemispheric language lateralization share a common network in the righ... more Music processing and right hemispheric language lateralization share a common network in the right auditory cortex and its frontal connections. Given that the development of hemispheric language dominance takes place over several years, this study tested whether musicianship could increase the probability of observing right language dominance in left-handers. Using a classic fMRI language paradigm, results showed that atypical lateralization was more predominant in musicians (40%) than in nonmusicians (5%). Comparison of left-handers with typical left and atypical right lateralization revealed that: (a) atypical cases presented a thicker right pars triangularis and more gyrified left Heschl's gyrus; and (b) the right pars triangularis of atypical cases showed a stronger intra-hemispheric functional connectivity with the right angular gyrus, but a weaker interhemispheric functional connectivity with part of the left Broca's area. Thus, musicianship is the first known factor related to a higher prevalence of atypical language dominance in healthy left-handed individuals. We suggest that differences in the frontal and temporal cortex might act as shared predisposing factors to both musicianship and atypical language lateralization.

Frontiers in psychology, 2018

The Supplementary Motor Area (SMA)-located in the superior and medial aspects of the superior fro... more The Supplementary Motor Area (SMA)-located in the superior and medial aspects of the superior frontal gyrus-is a preferential site of certain brain tumors and arteriovenous malformations, which often provoke the so-called SMA syndrome. The bulk of the literature studying this syndrome has focused on two of its most apparent symptoms: contralateral motor and speech deficits. Surprisingly, little attention has been given to working memory (WM) even though neuroimaging studies have implicated the SMA in this cognitive process. Given its relevance for higher-order functions, our main goal was to examine whether WM is compromised in SMA lesions. We also asked whether WM deficits might be reducible to processing speed (PS) difficulties. Given the connectivity of the SMA with prefrontal regions related to executive control (EC), as a secondary goal we examined whether SMA lesions also hampered EC. To this end, we tested 12 patients with lesions involving the left (i.e., the dominant) SMA. ...

Journal of Neurolinguistics, 2017

In the context of bilingual research, little is known about the effects of neurodegenerative diso... more In the context of bilingual research, little is known about the effects of neurodegenerative disorders (NDs) on the processing of two languages in a bilingual. In a recent cross-sectional study, we showed that Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) had similar effects on lexico-semantic processes in the two languages of highly proficient bilinguals (Costa et al., Neuropsychologia, 2012, 50, 740-53). In the present longitudinal study, we extend this finding by looking at the pattern of language deterioration over time in the same population of Catalan-Spanish bilingual patients. All the participants completed three language-processing tasks (picture naming, word translation and word comprehension), both in their dominant (L1) and non-dominant (L2) language. At one year, the final group was made up of 50 patients: 15 with MCI and 35 with AD. For AD but not MCI, the language deterioration over time was the same in both languages, as previously reported in the cross-sectional study. The results are discussed in the frame of the hypothesis of shared lexico-semantic processing in highly proficient bilinguals and the influence of executive control deficits in language production.

Psychological Science, 2019

Individual differences in the level of pleasure induced by music have been associated with the re... more Individual differences in the level of pleasure induced by music have been associated with the response of the striatum and differences in functional connectivity between the striatum and the auditory cortex. In this study, we tested whether individual differences in music reward are related to the structure of the striatum and the ability to discriminate pitch. We acquired a 3-D magnetization-prepared rapid-acquisition gradient-echo image for 32 musicians and 26 nonmusicians who completed a music-reward questionnaire and a test of pitch discrimination. The analysis of both groups together showed that sensitivity to music reward correlated negatively with the volume of both the caudate and nucleus accumbens and correlated positively with pitch-discrimination abilities. Moreover, musicianship, pitch discrimination, and caudate volume significantly predicted individual differences in music reward. These results are consistent with the proposal that individual differences in music rewa...

Language, Cognition and Neuroscience, 2016

Native speakers are sensitive to the frequencies of multiword phrases: they are faster to process... more Native speakers are sensitive to the frequencies of multiword phrases: they are faster to process higher frequency phrases, after controlling for all part frequencies (e.g., high: don't have to worry vs. low: don't have to wait). Here, we ask whether intermediateadvanced late (English) learners are also sensitive to the distributional properties of large language units: four-word combinations. Using a phrasal-decision task, we show that learners process multiword phrase frequency like natives do. This is not restricted to higher frequency phrases, but occurs across the frequency continuum: as natives, learners show multiword frequency effects even when comparing a low frequency phrase to a higher (but still low) frequency phrase. In addition, we show that the effect is not modulated by the type of English exposure (immersion vs. classroom). These results indicate that late language users develop sensitivity to distributional properties of large language units at native-like level.