Disturbing the sound of silence: Bilateral temporal cortex stimulation and auditory mental imagery

Auditory imagery depends on temporal-cortical mechanisms that generate and sustain internal sound representations. If these mechanisms are causally involved, externally perturbing temporal cortex should alter the quality of imagery. We tested whether bilateral high-frequency transcranial random noise stimulation (hf-tRNS) over temporal cortex alters the vividness and control of auditory imagery. Forty-nine healthy adults completed two sessions on separate days, receiving Active hf-tRNS in one session and Sham in the other (order counterbalanced). The Bucknell Auditory Imagery Scale (BAIS; Vividness and Control subscales) was administered as two parallel half-forms to avoid item repetition; across the two sessions each participant completed the full BAIS, and the half-form paired with the Active session was counterbalanced across participants. Results showed reduced Control ratings under Active hf-tRNS compared with Sham, while Vividness showed a similar but weaker pattern. The effect was independent of which half was completed during Active hf-tRNS, the day-to-half mapping, the stimulation order, or prior musical training. These findings indicate that bilateral hf-tRNS can transiently disrupt the volitional control of internally generated auditory representations, plausibly by perturbing temporal-cortical dynamics that support auditory imagery.