Tuesday, June 14, 2022

Fwd: June music-data seminar

The last of this year's music-data seminars will take place (virtually) on Monday 27/6 at 4pm (UK time)

Psyche Loui - Generation of New Musical Preferences from Hierarchical Mapping of Predictions to Reward

Abstract:
Prediction learning is considered a ubiquitous feature of biological systems that underlies perception, action, and reward. For cultural artifacts such as music, isolating the genesis of reward from prediction is challenging, since predictions are acquired implicitly throughout life. Here, we examined the trajectory of listeners' preferences for melodies in a novel musical system, where predictions were systematically manipulated. Across seven studies (n = 842 total) in two cultures, preferences scaled with predictions: participants preferred melodies that were presented more during exposure (global predictions) and that followed schematic expectations (local predictions). Learning trajectories depended on music reward sensitivity. Furthermore, fMRI showed that while auditory cortical activity reflects predictions, functional connectivity between auditory and reward areas encodes preference. The results are the first to highlight the hierarchical, relatively culturally-independent process by which predictions map onto reward. Collectively, our findings propose a novel mechanism by which the human brain links predictions with reward value.

Bio:
Psyche Loui is Associate Professor of Creativity and Creative Practice in the Department of Music and director of the MIND (Music, Imaging, and Neural Dynamics) lab at Northeastern University. She graduated from University of California, Berkeley with her PhD in Psychology, and attended Duke University as an undergraduate with degrees in Psychology and Music. Dr. Loui studies the neuroscience of music perception and cognition, tackling questions such as: What gives people the chills when they are moved by a piece of music? How does connectivity in the brain enable or disrupt music perception? Can music be used to help those with neurological and psychiatric disorders? Dr. Loui's work has been supported by National Institutes of Health and has received multiple Grammy awards, a young investigator award from the Positive Neuroscience Institute, and a Career award from the National Science Foundation, and has been featured by the Associated Press, New York Times, Boston Globe, BBC, CNN, the Scientist magazine, and other news outlets.

               
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Dr. Oded Ben-Tal
Senior Lecturer, Music Technology
Kingston University


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