Age and Sex Differences in Pure-Tone Thresholds

Loudness adaptation measured by the simultaneous dichotic loudness balance technique differs between genders

“…There is also no statistically significant difference in mean female thresholds compared with mean male thresholds, F(1, 24) = 2.77, p > 0.05. This finding is not in conflict with thresholds reported by Corso (1959). Table 1 shows mean values for thresholds by both ear (adapting, control) and gender.…”

“…Women tend to have lower auditory thresholds than men. This difference becomes statistically significant at higher frequencies (above 3 kHz) for the 18-40 year old range (Corso, 1959). During localization tasks, males tend to discriminate between small differences in interaural time and level differences more accurately and consistently than females (Langford, 1994).…”

“…Corso (1959) reports one of the first systematic investigations of hearing thresholds between genders. He measured threshold levels of 500 participants ranging in age from 18 to 49 years, at frequencies ranging from 250 to 8000 Hz.…”

Spectral integration time of the auditory localisation system

“…Each participant's absolute thresholds for 1, 2, 4, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16 kHz pure tones were measured using procedures described by Watson et al (2000). For all participants, all thresholds were lower than the relevant age-specific norm plus one standard deviation (as reported by Corso, 1963, andStelmachowicz et al, 1989).…”

On Sex-Related Differences in Auditory and Visual Sensory Functioning

“…Baker, 1987;Corso, 1959;Dreisbach, Kramer, Cobos, & Cowart, 2007;Sax, 2010). The present study expands this finding by demonstrating a male advantage in the ability to perceive differences in the loudness of two tones.…”