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What does the Speech-to-Speech Synchronization Test actually measure?

Poster Session F - Tuesday, March 10, 2026, 8:00 – 10:00 am PDT, Fairview/Kitsilano Ballroom

Carlos Magallanes-Aranda¹ (), M. Florencia Assaneo¹; ¹Institute of Neurobiology, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM)

The speech-to-speech synchronization test (SSS-test) is a brief behavioral protocol in which participants continuously whisper the syllable /tha/ while listening to a rhythmic sequence of syllables. This simple paradigm can identify two distinct subgroups within the general population, low/high synchronizers. However, the cognitive processes measured remain unclear, and this study aimed to clarify the relationship between SSS-test performance and rhythmic production abilities. Using an online paradigm, 103 participants were classified as low/high synchronizers with the SSS-test. A subsample (n = 68; 35 low, 33 high) completed the production part of the Battery for the Assessment of Auditory Sensorimotor and Timing Abilities (BAASTA), a validated tool for assessing individual differences in auditory–motor synchronization. We performed a PCA to the 40 BAASTA measures, which revealed that high synchronizers outperformed low synchronizers on the first component, which accounted for 25% of the variance and reflected general rhythmic production performance. To further explore group differences, we performed an EFA on the 16 variables identified to significantly differ between groups to determine whether a smaller set of cognitive mechanisms underlay the observed differences. Three latent factors emerged: one associated with the ability to adapt tapping rhythm to a perceived rhythm, another with conscious perception of rhythmic differences, and a third with motor-rhythm stability. Importantly, only the first factor distinguished between groups. These results provide strong evidence that the SSS-test reflects enhanced auditory–motor synchronization ability rather than perceptual differences, resolving a key debate and clarifying the cognitive processes that this widely used test actually assesses.

Topic Area: PERCEPTION & ACTION: Motor control