Single word and sentence intelligibility in children with cochlear implants

Abstract

This study examined the intelligibility of speech produced by 17 children (aged 4-11 years) with cochlear implants. Stimulus items included sentences from the Beginners' Intelligibility Test (BIT) and words from the Children Speech Intelligibility Measure (CSIM). Naïve listeners responded by writing sentences heard or with two types of responses to the word recordings; open transcription (CSIM-T) and closed set multiple choice (CSIM-MC). Percentage of items understood, averaged across three naïve judges, were compared across the three measures. Additionally, scores were examined for any relationships with chronological age, age of implantation, and amount of implant experience. Strong positive correlations were observed among all three intelligibility tasks. Scores on all three tasks were found to be significantly different from each other. A significant correlation was obtained between intelligibility and amount of implant experience, but not with chronological age or age of implantation. Results suggest that judging the intelligibility of speech produced by children with cochlear implants using both single word and sentence levels would provide a better overall estimate of their intelligibility. The results also emphasize the vital role of auditory input in the development of intelligible speech.

Long-term effects of cochlear implantation on the intelligibility of speech in French-speaking children

“…Intelligibility has been found to be correlated with chronological age in children aged 3;9 to 6;2 in the study by Flipsen and Colvard (2006), and those aged 2;5 to 18 in the study by Habib, Waltzman, Tajudeen, and Svirsky (2010), but not in those aged 4;8 to 11;1 in the study by Khwaileh and Flipsen (2010). It has been found to be correlated with age at implantation in Calmels et al (2004), Svirsky et al (2007), Habib et al (2010), and Montag, AuBuchon, Pisoni, and Kronenberger (2014), but not in the studies of Blamey et al (2001), Flipsen and Colvard (2006), and Khwaileh and Flipsen (2010). It is correlated with hearing age in the studies by Miyamoto et al (1997), Blamey et al (2001), Flipsen and Colvard (2006), and Khwaileh and Flipsen (2010).…”

“…It has been found to be correlated with age at implantation in Calmels et al (2004), Svirsky et al (2007), Habib et al (2010), and Montag, AuBuchon, Pisoni, and Kronenberger (2014), but not in the studies of Blamey et al (2001), Flipsen and Colvard (2006), and Khwaileh and Flipsen (2010). It is correlated with hearing age in the studies by Miyamoto et al (1997), Blamey et al (2001), Flipsen and Colvard (2006), and Khwaileh and Flipsen (2010). These diverging results might be explained by different speech materials considered (most studies use repeated words and utterances or even read sentences but seldom use spontaneous speech to assess the children's intelligibility), by different measurements used to judge the children's intelligibility (either transcriptions of speech samples or perceptual judgements of the reception of the children's production are used indifferently to assess intelligibility), or by the listeners' familiarity with pathological speech in children (speech therapists, phoneticians, students, naive listeners).…”

“…Further studies use standardized tests comprising both annotations and grades to assess intelligibility. Miyamoto et al (1997), Habib et al (2010), Khwaileh and Flipsen (2010), and Hassanzadeh (2012) use the Beginners's Intelligibility Rating (BIT; Osberger, Robbins, Todd, & Riley, 1994) and the CSIM (Children's Speech Intelligibility Measure; Wilcox & Morris, 1999): listeners (speech therapists, phoneticians, students …) are asked to rate the intelligibility of the child's speech as their perceived accuracy of sentences or segments in a repetition task, and to transcribe excerpts of the child's speech, from which a percentage of segmental accuracy is computed. Calmels et al (2004) use the Speech Intelligibility Rating (SIR; Allen, Nikolopoulos, & O'Donoghue, 1998): the children's own speech therapists assign a grade reflecting how well other listeners (e.g., parents, speech therapists) might understand the child's connected speech, but this study does not provide direct judgements by those listeners.…”

The effect of hearing impairment on the production of prominences: The case of French-speaking school-aged children using cochlear implants and children with normal hearing

“…These may entail difficulties in understanding speech and in producing intelligible speech (e.g. Blamey et al, 2001; Flipsen & Colvard, 2006; Habib, Waltzman, Tajudeen, & Svirsky, 2010; Khwaileh & Flipsen, 2010; Pisoni, 2005; Tye-Murray, Spencer, & Gilbert-Bedia, 1995). The speech production of children with a CI has been extensively studied in the last decades.…”

Evaluation of core vocabulary therapy for deaf children: Four treatment case studies

“…Factors affecting outcomes included age of onset, degree of hearing loss, extent of amplification experience and type of intervention (Khwaileh and Flipsen, 2010;Ouellet and Cohen, 1999). The data reviewed suggests that speech intelligibility remains an issue for some children with cochlear implants.…”