Abstract: Objective To investigate the features of the auditory mismatch response (MMR) elicited from the preschoolers and adults.Methods 9 preschoolers aged 3-6 and 8 adults were elicited and measured MMR to speech sounds (/bal/, /pal/) using the Oddball paradigm.Results The response was typical mismatch negativity in adults, and was slow positive waves with larger amplitude in the preschoolers.MNOVA results showed that there were significantly differences between the 2 groups, said the latency of MMRs was significantly longer and the amplitude was larger in the preschoolers than in the adults (P<0.05). Conclusion Stable MMRs with distinct characters in preschoolers and adults have been obtained respectively.

Key words: preschoolers, adults, Putonghua, mismatch response, event-related potential