Phonological mismatch and explicit cognitive processing in a sample of 102 hearing-aid users

2008 ◽  
Vol 47 (sup2) ◽  
pp. S91-S98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Rudner ◽  
Catharina Foo ◽  
Elisabet Sundewall-Thorén ◽  
Thomas Lunner ◽  
Jerker Rönnberg
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Phonological Mismatch

The Effects of Hearing Aid Directional Microphone and Noise Reduction Processing on Listening Effort in Older Adults with Hearing Loss

2016 ◽  
Vol 27 (01) ◽  
pp. 029-041 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie L. Desjardins
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Cognitive Load ◽  
Noise Reduction ◽  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Background Noise ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Recognition Performance ◽  
Listening Effort ◽  
Directional Microphone

Background: Older listeners with hearing loss may exert more cognitive resources to maintain a level of listening performance similar to that of younger listeners with normal hearing. Unfortunately, this increase in cognitive load, which is often conceptualized as increased listening effort, may come at the cost of cognitive processing resources that might otherwise be available for other tasks. Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the independent and combined effects of a hearing aid directional microphone and a noise reduction (NR) algorithm on reducing the listening effort older listeners with hearing loss expend on a speech-in-noise task. Research Design: Participants were fitted with study worn commercially available behind-the-ear hearing aids. Listening effort on a sentence recognition in noise task was measured using an objective auditory–visual dual-task paradigm. The primary task required participants to repeat sentences presented in quiet and in a four-talker babble. The secondary task was a digital visual pursuit rotor-tracking test, for which participants were instructed to use a computer mouse to track a moving target around an ellipse that was displayed on a computer screen. Each of the two tasks was presented separately and concurrently at a fixed overall speech recognition performance level of 50% correct with and without the directional microphone and/or the NR algorithm activated in the hearing aids. In addition, participants reported how effortful it was to listen to the sentences in quiet and in background noise in the different hearing aid listening conditions. Study Sample: Fifteen older listeners with mild sloping to severe sensorineural hearing loss participated in this study. Results: Listening effort in background noise was significantly reduced with the directional microphones activated in the hearing aids. However, there was no significant change in listening effort with the hearing aid NR algorithm compared to no noise processing. Correlation analysis between objective and self-reported ratings of listening effort showed no significant relation. Conclusions: Directional microphone processing effectively reduced the cognitive load of listening to speech in background noise. This is significant because it is likely that listeners with hearing impairment will frequently encounter noisy speech in their everyday communications.

Teachers' Stereotypes of Children Who Wear Hearing Aids

1981 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 139-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cletus G. Fisher ◽  
Kenneth Brooks
Keyword(s):  
Elementary School ◽  
School Child ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Social Implications ◽  
Elementary School Child ◽  
Classroom Teachers ◽  
Frequency Of Occurrence ◽  
Service Training

Classroom teachers were asked to list the traits they felt were characteristic of the elementary school child who wears a hearing aid. These listings were evaluated according to the desirability of the traits and were studied regarding frequency of occurrence, desirability, and educational, emotional, and social implications. The results of the groupings are discussed in terms of pre-service and in-service training.

Hearing Aid Gain Usage by Children

1989 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 149-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth W. Berger
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Appreciable Difference ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Clinically Significant

Hearing aid gain usage by two groups of children was examined. No appreciable difference was noted between the groups, nor was there a clinically significant difference between gain usage by these children as compared with a sample of adult hearing aid wearers.

The Hearing Aid Effect in African American and Caucasian Males as Perceived by Female Judges of the Same Race

1999 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 165-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary Davis ◽  
Rhonda Jackson ◽  
Tina Smith ◽  
William Cooper
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Undergraduate Education ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Semantic Differential ◽  
Semantic Differential Scale ◽  
Education Majors ◽  
Female Undergraduate ◽  
Lay Persons ◽  
Males And Females

Prior studies have proven the existence of the "hearing aid effect" when photographs of Caucasian males and females wearing a body aid, a post-auricular aid (behind-the-ear), or no hearing aid were judged by lay persons and professionals. This study was performed to determine if African American and Caucasian males, judged by female members of their own race, were likely to be judged in a similar manner on the basis of appearance, personality, assertiveness, and achievement. Sixty female undergraduate education majors (30 African American; 30 Caucasian) used a semantic differential scale to rate slides of preteen African American and Caucasian males, with and without hearing aids. The results of this study showed that female African American and Caucasian judges rated males of their respective races differently. The hearing aid effect was predominant among the Caucasian judges across the dimensions of appearance, personality, assertiveness, and achievement. In contrast, the African American judges only exhibited a hearing aid effect on the appearance dimension.

Students as Active Participants in Hearing Aid Maintenance

1992 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 208-213 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marsha Lipscomb ◽  
Peggy Von Almen ◽  
James C. Blair
Keyword(s):  
Inner City ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
School System ◽  
Regular Education ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Hearing Impairments ◽  
City School

Twenty students between the ages of 6 and 19 years who were receiving services for students with hearing impairments in a metropolitan, inner-city school system were trained to monitor their own hearing aids. This study investigated the effect of this training on the percentage of students who wore functional hearing aids. Ten of the students received fewer than 3 hours of instruction per day in the regular education setting and generally had hearing losses in the severe to profound range. The remaining 10 students received greater than 3 hours of instruction per day in the regular education setting and had hearing losses in the moderate to severe range. The findings indicated improved hearing aid function when students were actively involved in hearing aid maintenance programs. Recommendations are made concerning hearing aid maintenance in the schools.

The Relationship Between Hearing Loss Self-Management and Hearing Aid Benefit and Satisfaction

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 274-284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Convery ◽  
Gitte Keidser ◽  
Louise Hickson ◽  
Carly Meyer
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Clinical Decision Making ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Self Management ◽  
Hearing Aid Benefit ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose Hearing loss self-management refers to the knowledge and skills people use to manage the effects of hearing loss on all aspects of their daily lives. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between self-reported hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Method Thirty-seven adults with hearing loss, all of whom were current users of bilateral hearing aids, participated in this observational study. The participants completed self-report inventories probing their hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Correlation analysis was used to investigate the relationship between individual domains of hearing loss self-management and hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. Results Participants who reported better self-management of the effects of their hearing loss on their emotional well-being and social participation were more likely to report less aided listening difficulty in noisy and reverberant environments and greater satisfaction with the effect of their hearing aids on their self-image. Participants who reported better self-management in the areas of adhering to treatment, participating in shared decision making, accessing services and resources, attending appointments, and monitoring for changes in their hearing and functional status were more likely to report greater satisfaction with the sound quality and performance of their hearing aids. Conclusion Study findings highlight the potential for using information about a patient's hearing loss self-management in different domains as part of clinical decision making and management planning.

The S-SH Confusion Test and the Effects of Frequency Lowering

2019 ◽  
Vol 62 (5) ◽  
pp. 1486-1505
Author(s):  
Joshua M. Alexander
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Response Times ◽  
Nonlinear Frequency ◽  
Low Frequencies ◽  
Frequency Compression ◽  
Negative Side ◽  
Minimal Word ◽  
Low Pass ◽  
Negative Side Effects

PurposeFrequency lowering in hearing aids can cause listeners to perceive [s] as [ʃ]. The S-SH Confusion Test, which consists of 66 minimal word pairs spoken by 6 female talkers, was designed to help clinicians and researchers document these negative side effects. This study's purpose was to use this new test to evaluate the hypothesis that these confusions will increase to the extent that low frequencies are altered.MethodTwenty-one listeners with normal hearing were each tested on 7 conditions. Three were control conditions that were low-pass filtered at 3.3, 5.0, and 9.1 kHz. Four conditions were processed with nonlinear frequency compression (NFC): 2 had a 3.3-kHz maximum audible output frequency (MAOF), with a start frequency (SF) of 1.6 or 2.2 kHz; 2 had a 5.0-kHz MAOF, with an SF of 1.6 or 4.0 kHz. Listeners' responses were analyzed using concepts from signal detection theory. Response times were also collected as a measure of cognitive processing.ResultsOverall, [s] for [ʃ] confusions were minimal. As predicted, [ʃ] for [s] confusions increased for NFC conditions with a lower versus higher MAOF and with a lower versus higher SF. Response times for trials with correct [s] responses were shortest for the 9.1-kHz control and increased for the 5.0- and 3.3-kHz controls. NFC response times were also significantly longer as MAOF and SF decreased. The NFC condition with the highest MAOF and SF had statistically shorter response times than its control condition, indicating that, under some circumstances, NFC may ease cognitive processing.ConclusionsLarge differences in the S-SH Confusion Test across frequency-lowering conditions show that it can be used to document a major negative side effect associated with frequency lowering. Smaller but significant differences in response times for correct [s] trials indicate that NFC can help or hinder cognitive processing, depending on its settings.

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