In a study published in Nature Communications, Vanderbilt University Medical Center researchers from the Department of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery used two complementary investigations—one behavioral and one genetic—to demonstrate a connection between individuals' musical rhythm skills and developmental speech‑language conditions.
These conditions include developmental language disorder, dyslexia, stuttering, and other related disorders.
Data indicated that a deficit in musical rhythm perception is a "modest but consistent risk factor for developmental speech, language and reading disorders," according to lead author Dr. Srishti Nayak, an assistant professor of Otolaryngology‑Head and Neck Surgery.
"Investigating the relationship between rhythm ability and speech‑language disorders was compelling because of the significant health and societal impacts of these conditions," said Nayak, who also co‑directs the Vanderbilt Music Cognition Lab.
"When evaluating children, assessing their rhythm competence enables clinicians to design targeted therapies that can mitigate many of the mental and physical health challenges, academic difficulties, and socioeconomic disadvantages associated with developmental communication disorders."
The twin studies examined behavioral manifestations and genetic contributions, drawing on cohorts from VUMC and several other institutions.
In the behavioral study, researchers assessed participants' sensitivity to subtle rhythmic differences, their ability to synchronize movements—such as tapping—to a beat, and collected qualitative reports of rhythm skills. Consistent with their hypothesis, poorer rhythm performance correlated with a higher likelihood of clinical speech‑language problems and disorders, though stuttering emerged as an exception likely due to exposure to rhythm‑based interventions.
In the genetic study, researchers explored how shared genetic factors underlying rhythm and language traits account for variations in language‑related abilities. Notably, genetic variants linked to rhythm predicted reading scores, a behavioral outcome, as well as reading ability itself, indicating that biological pathways common to rhythm and reading influence these skills.
"Understanding how musicality and communication deficits intertwine helps illuminate the roles of these core cognitive domains," added Nayak. "Music, speech, and reading are often taken for granted, yet they are deeply wired into the brain. Our findings emphasize that the associations between them are both behavioral and genetic."
Dr. Reyna Gordon, an associate professor of Otolaryngology and co‑director of the Music Cognition Lab, served as the corresponding author. Other VUMC contributors included Dr. Yasmina Mekki, a senior statistical genetic analyst; Dr. Rachana Nitin, a research fellow in the Division of Genetic Medicine; and Catherine T. Bush, CCC‑SLP, a speech‑language pathologist in the Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences.