Auditory and cognitive contributions to hearing-impaired listeners’ spatial speech recognition performance

Authors

  • Tobias Neher Eriksholm Research Centre, Oticon A/S, Kongevejen 243, DK-3070 Snekkersten, Denmark
  • Søren Laugesen Eriksholm Research Centre, Oticon A/S, Kongevejen 243, DK-3070 Snekkersten, Denmark
  • Niels S. Jensen Eriksholm Research Centre, Oticon A/S, Kongevejen 243, DK-3070 Snekkersten, Denmark
  • Louise Kragelund Eriksholm Research Centre, Oticon A/S, Kongevejen 243, DK-3070 Snekkersten, Denmark

Abstract

This study investigated the auditory and cognitive processes affecting speech recognition in spatially complex, multi-talker situations. Twenty- three elderly hearing-impaired (HI) listeners were tested on a number of competing-speech tasks, a measure of monaural spectral ripple discrimination, a measure of binaural temporal fine structure (TFS) sensitivity, and two cognitive measures indexing working memory and attention. All auditory test stimuli were spectrally shaped to restore (partial) audibility for each listener on each listening task. Eight younger normal- hearing (NH) listeners served as a control group. Data analyses revealed that the chosen auditory and cognitive measures were unable to predict speech recognition when the target and maskers were separated along the front-back dimension. When the competing talkers were separated along the left-right dimension, however, speech recognition was correlated with the measures of attention and binaural TFS sensitivity as well as with low- frequency hearing thresholds. Altogether, these results support the notion that both bottom-up and top-down deficits are responsible for the impaired functioning of elderly HI listeners in cocktail party-like situations.

References

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Additional Files

Published

2011-12-15

How to Cite

Neher, T., Laugesen, S., Jensen, N. S., & Kragelund, L. (2011). Auditory and cognitive contributions to hearing-impaired listeners’ spatial speech recognition performance. Proceedings of the International Symposium on Auditory and Audiological Research, 3, 81–88. Retrieved from https://proceedings.isaar.eu/index.php/isaarproc/article/view/2011-09

Issue

Vol. 3 (2011): Speech Perception and Auditory Disorders

Section

2011/1. Indicators of hearing impairment and measures of speech perception

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