The Influence of Cartoon-Soundscape Irrelevant Sound Effects on Young Children's Auditory Processing and Working Memory Skills.

Background:  Irrelevant sound or speech effect affects an individual's serial recall task of visual and auditory presentations. Cartoon soundscape mimics irrelevant sound effects. A constant and repeated exposure to cartoons in early childhood should influence children's auditory learning or recall performance.

Purpose:  To investigate the effects of cartoons' soundscape irrelevant sound effects on young children's auditory processing and working memory skills.

Research design:  A cross-sectional study was used to observe the influence of the cartoon soundscape irrelevant sound effects on children.

Study sample:  Sixty young children having hearing thresholds within 15 dB HL, in the age range 5 to 6 years, exposed to cartoons (Indian plus non-Indian) were considered for the study.

Data collection and analysis:  Pitch pattern test (PPT), duration pattern test (DPT), and Corsi block working memory apparatus were applied to the participants exposed to cartoons. The data obtained were compared statistically in terms of the groups' performances.

Results:  There was a significant difference in PPT (p = 0.023) and DPT (p = 0.001) between the exposed and nonexposed groups. In contrast, there was no significant difference between the two groups in Corsi block working memory (p > 0.05).

Conclusion:  Cartoon soundscape irrelevant sound or speech affects young children's auditory processing skills. The visual-spatial recall follows a different developmental pattern in young children without recoding to phonological aspects. It is predicted that our study findings might help determine the ill effects of cartoons on the auditory and language development process.