Document Type
Undergraduate Thesis
Publication Date
2014
Journal
Undergraduate Honours Theses
Abstract
Previous research has demonstrated that infants have a natural preference to listen to fast temporal sequences over intermediate temporal sequences (Steffler, 2012, unpublished thesis). The present study seeks to explore whether or not infant tempo preferences are context-dependent, specifically examining the effect of arousal levels on tempo preferences. In the current study, 6- to 8-month-old infants' preference for tempo was evaluated using a head-turn preference procedure, following an arousal induction phase, in which the infants' environment was altered with the aim of lowering their physiological arousal. Infants showed a significant 3-way interaction between side of presentation, first stimulus presentation, and tempo.