Modulation of predictive coding in auditory paradigms of varying complexity in children with Specific Language Impairment.

Abstract

Specific Language Impairment (SLI) is a persistent difficulty in the acquisition and use of expressive and/or receptive language, which negatively impacts academic and social development. The present study evaluated the validity of the statistical learning model proposed to explain language difficulties in children with SLI. To this end, two auditory paradigms of varying complexity, framed within predictive coding theory, were passively presented to children diagnosed with SLI and without neurological impairments. The paradigms consisted of stimulus sequences with decreasing or increasing frequencies, interspersed with the sporadic occurrence of unexpected tone endings. The psychophysiological response was recorded using EEG, focusing on the P1, Mismatch Negativity (MMN), Post-imperative Negative Variation PINV, and Contingent Negative Variation (CNV) components. Results showed an absent MMN and a higher P1 response to deviant tones in children with SLI, suggesting an impaired development of frontal MMN generators, possibly compensated by the primary auditory cortex. SLI participants also showed increased PINV and CNV responses during the most complex paradigm, which could imply greater cognitive effort and resource allocation to the reassessment of stimulus patterns in this group. Finally, the incomplete maturation of frontal areas in children of this age range (3 to 11 years old) was proposed to explain the increased activity observed in both groups for the N1/MMN elicited in the simplest paradigm. These findings support statistical learning as a valid model for understanding the possible neural basis of SLI, identifying this type of predictive EEG design as a potential early detection protocol.