The Cross-Domain Priming of Language and Motor Rate

Abstract

Previous research has indicated that the language domain is involved in domain-general processing of temporal information. The current research investigated a connection between the motor and language domains in temporal processing. Participants were primed with a specific rate (fast/slow) in the tactile domain only, or the tactile and motor domains, and were asked to produce speech; speech was recorded and measured for rate. It was expected that participants would adjust their speech rate to match the rate of the prime. A significant interaction of Gender and Rate was found, such that females were influenced by the rate of the prime in the expected direction (e.g., fast prime led to faster speech), while males were influenced by the motor prime in the opposite direction (e.g., fast prime led to slower speech). Previous research has found gender differences in the human mirror system. This may account for the gender differences in the current study, such that females may have been more likely to synchronize with the rate of prime, therefore rendering the expected effect on speech rate. These results may have implications on social and linguistic research on gender differences in communication, and the future directions of cross-domain processing.