Featured Publications
Infants relax in response to unfamiliar foreign lullabies
Bainbridge C, Bertolo M, Youngers J, Atwood S, Yurdum L, Simson J, Lopez K, Xing F, Martin A, Mehr S. Infants relax in response to unfamiliar foreign lullabies. Nature Human Behaviour 2020, 5: 256-264. PMID: 33077883, PMCID: PMC8220405, DOI: 10.1038/s41562-020-00963-z.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsMusical experienceMusical featuresListener experienceLullabiesAcoustic formForeign societiesFussy infantAdult listenersHuman mindDifferent culturesElectrodermal activitySongsBehavioral functionsInfant's parentsExperienceParentsMusicListenersPupillometryCultureInfantsMindFirst yearSocietyUS infantsFor 5-Month-Old Infants, Melodies Are Social
Mehr S, Song L, Spelke E. For 5-Month-Old Infants, Melodies Are Social. Psychological Science 2016, 27: 486-501. PMID: 26917211, DOI: 10.1177/0956797615626691.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsSelective attentionFamiliar melodiesRemarkable memoryNew personUnfamiliar melodiesUnfamiliar adultsFamiliar songsNovel individualsUnfamiliar songsSocial partnersDifferent melodiesMelodyNovel songsOlder infantsSong exposureSocial meaningPersonsToysMemorySongsInfantsInteractive videoParentsSingingAdults
2024
Spectro-temporal acoustical markers differentiate speech from song across cultures
Albouy P, Mehr S, Hoyer R, Ginzburg J, Du Y, Zatorre R. Spectro-temporal acoustical markers differentiate speech from song across cultures. Nature Communications 2024, 15: 4835. PMID: 38844457, PMCID: PMC11156671, DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49040-3.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
2022
Using machine learning to understand age and gender classification based on infant temperament
Gartstein M, Seamon D, Mattera J, Enlow M, Wright R, Perez-Edgar K, Buss K, LoBue V, Bell M, Goodman S, Spieker S, Bridgett D, Salisbury A, Gunnar M, Mliner S, Muzik M, Stifter C, Planalp E, Mehr S, Spelke E, Lukowski A, Groh A, Lickenbrock D, Santelli R, Du Rocher Schudlich T, Anzman-Frasca S, Thrasher C, Diaz A, Dayton C, Moding K, Jordan E. Using machine learning to understand age and gender classification based on infant temperament. PLOS ONE 2022, 17: e0266026. PMID: 35417495, PMCID: PMC9007342, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0266026.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
2021
Across demographics and recent history, most parents sing to their infants and toddlers daily
Yan R, Jessani G, Spelke E, de Villiers P, de Villiers J, Mehr S. Across demographics and recent history, most parents sing to their infants and toddlers daily. Philosophical Transactions Of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences 2021, 376: 20210089. PMID: 34719251, PMCID: PMC8558774, DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0089.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsInfant-directed singingReliable individual differencesMost parentsFrequency of singingIndividual differencesPsychological functionsVoice modulationMusicSingingChild's ageSalient componentsEveryday natureSurvey of parentsParentsTechnological environmentParents' incomeRecent historyTheme issueHuman societyYoung familiesToddlersSocial impactInfantsDaily basisLatter effect
2020
Does greater morning sickness predict carrying a girl? Analysis of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy from retrospective report
Young N, La Rosa M, Mehr S, Krasnow M. Does greater morning sickness predict carrying a girl? Analysis of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy from retrospective report. Archives Of Gynecology And Obstetrics 2020, 303: 1161-1166. PMID: 33098451, DOI: 10.1007/s00404-020-05839-1.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsFetal sexMaternal ageFemale fetusesSignificant independent predictorsFemale fetal sexPurposeThe prevalenceSevere nauseaIndependent predictorsInternational web-based surveyFirst trimesterInclusion criteriaMorning sicknessSevere formNauseaPregnancyMale fetusesGeographic cohortWeb-based surveyParity statusFive hundredFetusesSelf-reported dataVomitingSexHigh frequency
2018
Sight-over-sound judgments of music performances are replicable effects with limited interpretability
Mehr S, Scannell D, Winner E. Sight-over-sound judgments of music performances are replicable effects with limited interpretability. PLOS ONE 2018, 13: e0202075. PMID: 30183719, PMCID: PMC6124715, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0202075.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsMusic performanceListener judgmentsPerformance qualityForced-choice taskMusical expressivityTheatrical flairSound effectsReplicable effectsVisual informationActual judgmentsOpposite patternListenersJudgmentsSoundLimited interpretabilityVideoSightMusicMusiciansPerformersDifferent videosAudienceSound judgmentAudioExpressivityForm and Function in Human Song
Mehr S, Singh M, York H, Glowacki L, Krasnow M. Form and Function in Human Song. Current Biology 2018, 28: 356-368.e5. PMID: 29395919, PMCID: PMC5805477, DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2017.12.042.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsVocal musicMusical featuresSong functionsFunction ratingsDance songsHuman songSong formLove songsBrief excerptsParticipants' unfamiliarityPseudorandom sampleForm-function relationsSongsMusicExcerptsSmall-scale societiesSocial functionUniversal linkContextual featuresInternet usersActual functionExperiment 1DanceLullabiesListeners
2017
Genomic Imprinting Is Implicated in the Psychology of Music
Mehr S, Kotler J, Howard R, Haig D, Krasnow M. Genomic Imprinting Is Implicated in the Psychology of Music. Psychological Science 2017, 28: 1455-1467. PMID: 28857689, DOI: 10.1177/0956797617711456.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsPsychology of musicMusic listeningInfant-directed songPitch discrimination abilitiesMusical phenotypesPerceptual sensitivityMusicSpecific deficitsParents' attentionHuman infantsListeningPsychologyInvestment demandSongsAttentionPrader-Willi syndromePeopleUnusual responseDeficitsExaggerationChildrenGreater reductionAdultsHistoryDisordersShared musical knowledge in 11‐month‐old infants
Mehr S, Spelke E. Shared musical knowledge in 11‐month‐old infants. Developmental Science 2017, 21 PMID: 28229502, DOI: 10.1111/desc.12542.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsMusical toysVisual attentionSocial informationTypes of musicInfant visual attentionFive-month-old infantsSocial responsesMusical knowledgePlay songsFamiliar songsParental singingInfant listenersMusicSong exposureSongsPsychological functionsNovel peopleInfants' responsesSocial meaningContemporary environmentSocial preferencesSocial playMelodySingersSinging
2013
Two Randomized Trials Provide No Consistent Evidence for Nonmusical Cognitive Benefits of Brief Preschool Music Enrichment
Mehr S, Schachner A, Katz R, Spelke E. Two Randomized Trials Provide No Consistent Evidence for Nonmusical Cognitive Benefits of Brief Preschool Music Enrichment. PLOS ONE 2013, 8: e82007. PMID: 24349171, PMCID: PMC3859544, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0082007.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsVisual arts classesMusic classesArt classesCognitive developmentCognitive effectsEarly music educationVisual form analysisChildren's cognitive developmentSpatial navigational abilityMusic educationMusic instructionMusic lessonsMusical activitiesVisual artsMusic trainingArt activitiesMusical trainingTreatment controlArts instructionWeeks of classesReceptive vocabularyChildren's cognitionCognitive areasCognitive benefitsNumerical discrimination