The head turn paradigm to assess auditory laterality in cats: influence of ear position and repeated sound presentation.

ABSTRACT: In most humans, speech is predominantly processed by the left hemisphere. This auditory laterality was formerly thought to be an exclusive human characteristic, but is now suggested to have pre-human origins. In studies on auditory laterality in nonhuman animals, the head turn paradigm has become very popular due to its non-invasive character. Although there are implications that the head turn direction indicates functional dominance of the contralateral hemisphere in processing a given sound, the validity of the paradigm is under debate. To validate the paradigm via comparison with imaging or electrophysiological methods, it is first necessary to establish turning biases at the individual level. Recently, the domestic cat, a common model in hearing research, has been found to show turning

SUBMITTER: Konerding WS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5659213 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature