Prenatal behavioural and biochemical emotional communication and the origins of music Richard Parncutt Department of Musicology, University of Graz, Austria Presented at Evolution of Emotional Communication (EEC 2007), Hannover, Germany, September 2007

Question How does music induce emotion? (Juslin) Hypothesis Music is a byproduct of prenatal auditory, vestibular and proprioceptive function

A theoretical paper idea and argument reference to diverse disciplines –ethnomusicology, historical musicology –psychology, sociology –physiology, medicine, gynecology, pediatrics –acoustics, psychoacoustics, audiology –zoology, ethology

Literature example Hopkins & Johnson (Eds.) (2005) Prenatal development of postnatal functions Pallas: Pre- and postnatal sensory experience shapes functional architecture in the brain Lecanuet, Granier-Deferre, DeCasper: Are we expecting too much from prenatal experiences? Schaal: From amnion to colostrum in milk: Odor bridging in early developmental transitions Porter, Winberg, Varendi: Prenatal preparation for early postnatal olfactory learning Robinson, Kleven: Learning to move before birth de Vries, Hopkins: Fetal movements and postures: What do they mean for postnatal development? Glover, O‘Connor: Effects of antenatal maternal stress and anxiety: From fetus to child

Ecological approach Perception depends primarily on interaction with environmental affordances (Gibson) –does not contradict cognitive approaches –appropriate if no reflective consciousness

Music and emotion 1. Strong emotions assoc. with survival and reproduction (evolutionary psychology; Buss) –hunger, anger, fear –sexual arousal, love, jealousy 2. Music evokes strong emotions (Sloboda; Gabrielsson) 3. But music is unnecessary for survival & reproduction (Pinker) –art is by definition non-functional...although music may enhance fitness –through social relationships

The mystery of music’s origins Why does music evoke strong emotions although it has no clear adaptive value?

Association music↔emotion Musical emotions may be…...carried by learned sound & movement patterns –nostalgia (episodic memory, “They’re playing our song”) –youth culture and identity...based on motherese –universal emotional-gestural vocabulary? (Papousek) –nature or nurture? (Trehub)

Ontogeny of auditory, vestibular and proprioceptive function The following emerge near the middle of gestation: 1. Audition –physiological and behavioral evidence (Hepper, Lecanuet...) 2. Vestibular sense –semicircular canals (rotation) –otoliths (linear acceleration) –evidence is only physiological 3. Motor control and proprioception (Smotherman & Robinson)

The prenatal stage as a developmental niche Adaptive pressure –prenatal survival –postnatal survival Transnatal (dis-) continuity Nature, nurture or prenatal development? (Smotherman)

Infant mortality and bonding Infant mortality > 50% in hunter-gatherer societies  anything that promotes infant survival is selected Bonding, attachment (Trevarthen) –mutual sensitivity to physical/emotional state –pre- and postnatal

Prenatal information about maternal state biochemical –changing hormone concentrations –quickly pass placenta and brain-blood barrier behavioural –patterns of sound and movement –perceptible after 20 weeks

Prenatal behavioral communication Internal maternal sound and movement patterns –vocalization –respiration –circulation –impacts (footsteps) –movement –digestion All depend on maternal (emotional) state

Prenatal biochemical communication Hormone concentrations in maternal blood reflect physical and emotional state adrenaline (epinephrine), adrenocorticotrophic hormone ACTH, aldosterone, corticosteroids, corticotrophin-releasing hormone CRH, cortisol, dopamine, endorphins, glucocorticoids, insulin, melatonin, mineralicorticoids, noradrenaline (norepinephrine), oestrogen, oxytocin, prolactin, serotonin, testosterone, thyrosine… = a complex, redundant signal (like music)

Possible mechanism: hypothalmus-pituitary axis maternal stress/anxiety ↓ increased maternal CRH increased fetal cortisol reduced uterine blood flow ↓ congenital abnormalities preterm labor behavioral problems (Glover & O‘Connor)

A 3-stage model of music’s origin stagephylogenesisontogenesis prenatal classical conditioning prenatal audition 10 7 – 10 8 years ago 20 weeks gestation postnatal operant conditioning walk + big brain  altriciality  motherese 10 6 – 10 7 years ago birth reflective consciousness cultural explosion ~ 10 5 years ago 1-3 years

Prenatal conditioning Emotion is defined as response to change. Regular everyday temporal sequence of changes: –maternal physiology environment (external event) maternal state –fetal perception internal sound and movement patterns hormone levels Many repetitions of similar patterns over 4 months –must the fetus be “awake”?

Prenatal associations between sound, movement and emotion … are presumably strong due to… –prenatal dominance of audition –survival value of prenatal communication

Music and the mother schema Infant schema = cuteness (Lorenz) cognitive representation of infant perceived by mother / adults...but bonding is a two-way interaction! Mother schema = voice, smell, breast, motherese cognitive representation of mother perceived by fetus / infant –first schema in life –primary environmental object –basis of music’s personal and spiritual properties?

Evidence Early parent-offspring conflict (Haig) –placenta hormonally manipulates nutrient supply Prenatal learning (Hepper, Smotherman) –exposure, habituation, conditioning –human and non-human data –chemosensory (Schaal; Porter) & auditory (Decasper & Fifer) –function: perinatal bonding Infant sensitivity to music (Trehub) –nature or nurture?

Postnatal operant conditioning Quasi-random behaviors in motherese, play and ritual –produce sound/movement patterns –evoke prenatally established associations These behaviors are reinforced –their frequency of occurrence increases

Transnatal implicit memory Duration in empirical studies: –5 weeks (Granier-Deferr; Hepper) –long enough to influence motherese Protomusic in motherese, play, ritual –reinforces associations –distorts associations

“Real” music Protomusic became music kya –with reflective consciousness (Noble & Davidson) –during cultural explosion (Mithen)

Prediction (1) Prenatally hearing animals e.g. –primates –sheep, goats –guinea pigs –whales, seals, walrus?...should... –associate prenatal sound↔movement↔emotion –imitate complex sound & movement patterns (Merker)

Prediction (2) Ultrasound images of fetal face in 3rd trimester (Kurjak) should in part reflect maternal emotional state

Conclusion (1) A theory of music as a byproduct of prenatal auditory-vestibular- proprioceptive function and bonding is consistent with music’s –universality –emotional power –structures (rhythmic, melodic, harmonic) –specific universal characteristics individual, social personal, spiritual, religious pain reducing, healing, entrancing

Conclusion (2) Prenatal byproduct theory is complementary to other theories of music’s origins such as –extended vocalisation (Sachs, Wallin...) –playful imitation (Cazden, Dissanayake, Tolbert...) –cognitive-motor training (Roederer) –social glue (Cross, Huron...) no contradiction clearer separation of origin and function

Conclusion (3) Prenatal conditioning may represent the ultimate origin of music but may not explain individual differences in music behaviors and abilities