The interplay between multisensory integration and attention in children
Date: 2012-06-21 03:00 PM – 04:30 PM
Last modified: 2012-04-27
Abstract
In adults, it is well known that multisensory processes can be modulated by attention, however, little is understood about the development of this interplay. This study investigated the relationship between multisensory integration and attention in children. The Tests of Everyday Attention for Children (TEA-Ch) was used to assess visual attention (Sky Search subscale), sustained auditory attention (Score DT subscale) and audio-visual attention (Sky Search DT subscale, i.e., Sky Search and Score DT combined) in 59 children (age range: 7 – 12 years). The Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children – Fourth Edition – Australian (WISC-IV) was used to measure general intellectual abilities. Multisensory integration was gauged using the stream-bounce illusion (SBI). Participants were presented with two discs moving horizontally toward each other either with no sound or with a click sound at -400ms, -250ms, 0ms, +250ms +400ms relative to the time of collision of the two discs. The perception of the SBI significantly increased when the sound was presented at or near the time of collision. Correlation analyses showed that both age (r=.24, p