Gated Auditory Speech Perception in Elderly Hearing Aid Users and Elderly Normal-Hearing Individuals: Effects of Hearing Impairment and Cognitive Capacity

Abstract

This study compared elderly hearing aid (EHA) users and elderly normal-hearing (ENH) individuals on identification of auditory speech stimuli (consonants, words, and final word in sentences) that were different when considering their linguistic properties. We measured the accuracy with which the target speech stimuli were identified, as well as the isolation points (IPs: the shortest duration, from onset, required to correctly identify the speech target). The relationships between working memory capacity, the IPs, and speech accuracy were also measured. Twenty-four EHA users (with mild to moderate hearing impairment) and 24 ENH individuals participated in the present study. Despite the use of their regular hearing aids, the EHA users had delayed IPs and were less accurate in identifying consonants and words compared with the ENH individuals. The EHA users also had delayed IPs for final word identification in sentences with lower predictability; however, no significant between-group difference in accuracy was observed. Finally, there were no significant between-group differences in terms of IPs or accuracy for final word identification in highly predictable sentences. Our results also showed that, among EHA users, greater working memory capacity was associated with earlier IPs and improved accuracy in consonant and word identification. Together, our findings demonstrate that the gated speech perception ability of EHA users was not at the level of ENH individuals, in terms of IPs and accuracy. In addition, gated speech perception was more cognitively demanding for EHA users than for ENH individuals in the absence of semantic context.

Effects of Hearing and Aging on Sentence-Level Time-Gated Word Recognition

“…Thus, in cases in which targets were highly predictable based on the sentence context, there was no penalty or advantage of age. Consistent with previous findings (Craig et al, 1993; Moradi, Lidestam, Hällgren, & Rönnberg, 2014; Moradi, Lidestam, Saremi, & Rönnberg, 2014), we found that word predictability tended to assist subjects in the early sensory perception of time-gated HC words but that older adults’ increased language experience did not facilitate higher performance in the TGW-recognition paradigm.…”

“…A handful of recent studies have employed the gating paradigm to investigate identification of initial consonants, isolated words, and final words in low- and high-predictability sentences in older hearing aid users or older listeners with nominally normal hearing (pure-tone average or PTA ∼18 dB HL; Moradi, Lidestam, Hällgren, & Rönnberg, 2014) and young listeners (thresholds not provided) in quiet and noise (Moradi, Lidestam, & Rönnberg, 2013; Moradi, Lidestam, Saremi, & Rönnberg, 2014). The results demonstrated longer IPs in noise for the younger listeners and for the older hearing aid users in the low-predictability sentences compared with the older listeners with normal hearing.…”

Public Health Policy for Management of Hearing Impairments Based on Big Data Analytics: EVOTION at Genesis

“…Ideally, HA fitting should take into account: (a) a range of personal and real life behavioural, physiological and other auditory related data; and (b) an analysis of the circumstances which are challenging for individual HA users on a continuous basis. It should also be appropriately supported by individualised rehabilitation treatments such as auditory training [12], as HA users depend more on their cognitive resources than normal hearing listeners in order to understand speech [13]. Nevertheless, evidence on how to link such information with appropriate, individualised management strategies is still lacking.…”

Effects of hearing loss on traffic safety and mobility

“…This effect has been shown on both young and adult listeners with HL (Arlinger, 2003;Hicks & Tharpe, 2002;Tun, McCoy, & Wingfield, 2009). In addition, several studies have shown that hearing aids do not fully restore speech difficulties of individuals with HL (e.g., Dimitrijevic et al, 2004;Moradi, Lidestam, Hällgren, & Rönnberg, 2014;Nakeva von Mentzer, 2014), which made perceiving speech stimuli cognitively demanding (Moradi et al, 2014;Rönnberg et al, 2013).…”

“…Moradi et al, 2014;Rönnberg et al, 2013) and could lead to decreased attention. Also, studying the effect of reducing cognitive fatigue on traffic safety can add to the understanding of the problem.…”