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Children’s Enhanced Sensory Processing After Intense Music or Visual Art Training

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

Jennifer Bugos¹ (), Faith Nwosu¹, Steven Nguyen¹; ¹University of South Florida

Long-term music training was shown to increase auditory processing in young children. However, little is known about whether short-term intense music training can increase pre-attentive processing in middle childhood. We recruited 58 children who were 8-12 years, without any previous formal music or visual art training, and no history of learning disabilities or sensory deficits. All children were screened for hearing loss and completed baseline measures of music aptitude and intelligence. Children were randomly assigned to an intense (9 day/27 hours) group piano training, visual art training, or a no-treatment control group. The piano training program consisted of scales, finger dexterity exercises, music theory, and basic piano repertoire. The visual art program consisted of painting and drawing technique, art concepts, skill practice, and construction of art pieces. We recorded the mismatch negativity (MMN), a cortical correlate of preattentive processing, in the musical (piano tones) and language (vowels) domain. Results of an ANOVA showed no baseline group differences. MMN data showed an increased amplitude for the music and visual art groups as compared to controls. Larger amplitudes were found for the music group when compared to visual art group. These results highlight the influence of intense short-term music training on music and speech perception in middle childhood.

Topic Area: PERCEPTION & ACTION: Audition