Speech processing and auditory hallucinations

Abstract

Cerebral imaging studies have demonstrated an overlap between language and auditory verbal hallucination (AVH) networks. Consequently, investigating speech processing can be used in order to better understand the pathophysiology of AVH. In this chapter, three kinds of studies are discussed. First, the studies using speech processing to investigate the hemispheric lateralization for language and its relationships with AVH are presented. Second, we report studies involving speech processing to investigate cognitive models such as competition between AVH and verbal auditory stimuli, impairment in recognizing inner speech, and abnormal discrimination of the source of inner speech. Finally, we show the interest in using speech processing during functional cerebral imaging to locate the target of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in patients with schizophrenia and AVH.