Self-other voice discrimination task: A potential neuropsychological tool for clinical assessment of self-related deficits
Philippe Voruz,
Pavo Orepic,
Selim Yahia Coll,
Julien Haemmerli,
Olaf Blanke,
Julie Anne Péron,
Karl Schaller,
Giannina Rita Iannotti
Affiliations
Philippe Voruz
Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospitals of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland; Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology, University of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland; Corresponding author. Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, 40 bd du Pont d’Arve, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland.
Pavo Orepic
Department of Basic Neurosciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1202, Geneva, Switzerland
Selim Yahia Coll
Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospitals of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland; Laboratory of Cognitive Neurorehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
Julien Haemmerli
Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospitals of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
Olaf Blanke
Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Neuro-X Institute and Brain Mind Institute, Faculty of Life Sciences, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL), 1211, Geneva, Switzerland
Julie Anne Péron
Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology, University of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
Karl Schaller
Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospitals of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland; NeuroCentre, University Hospitals of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
Giannina Rita Iannotti
Department of Neurosurgery, University Hospitals of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland; NeuroCentre, University Hospitals of Geneva, 1205, Geneva, Switzerland
Background: Deficits in self are commonly described through different neuro-pathologies, based on clinical evaluations and experimental paradigms. However, currently available approaches lack appropriate clinical validation, making objective evaluation and discrimination of self-related deficits challenging. Methods: We applied a statistical standardized method to assess the clinical discriminatory capacity of a Self-Other Voice Discrimination (SOVD) task. This task, validated experimentally as a marker for self-related deficits, was administered to 17 patients eligible for neurosurgery due to focal hemispheric brain tumors or epileptic lesions. Results: The clinical discriminatory capacity of the SOVD task was evident in three patients who exhibited impairments for self-voice perception that could not be predicted by other neuropsychological deficits. Impairments in other-voice perception were linked to inhibitory neuropsychological deficits, suggesting a potential association with executive deficits in voice recognition. Conclusions: This exploratory study highlights the clinical discriminatory potential of the SOVD task and suggests that it could complement the standard neuropsychological assessment, paving the way for enhanced diagnoses and tailored treatments for self-related deficits.
