Response to own name in children: ERP study of auditory social information processing

• We examined ERP responses to own, known, and unknown names in children.
• We used a passive listening paradigm with no attentional demands.
• Personally known names elicited larger P300 than unknown names.
• P300 to repeated unknown names did not differ from unknown names presented once.
• ERPs to known/unknown names are a feasible marker of complex auditory processing.

Auditory processing is an important component of cognitive development, and names are among the most frequently occurring receptive language stimuli. Although own name processing has been examined in infants and adults, surprisingly little data exist on responses to own name in children. The present ERP study examined spoken name processing in 32 children (M = 7.85 years) using a passive listening paradigm. Our results demonstrated that children differentiate own and close other’s names from unknown names, as reflected by the enhanced parietal P300 response. The responses to own and close other names did not differ between each other. Repeated presentations of an unknown name did not result in the same familiarity as the known names. These results suggest that auditory ERPs to known/unknown names are a feasible means to evaluate complex auditory processing without the need for overt behavioral responses.