Many children with sensorineural hearing impairment have sufficient residual hearing to use hearing aids and aural/oral language as their primary mode of communication. Yet the degree of success in understanding speech varies widely in these children, even in those with the same degree and configuration of hearing loss. This problem might be significantly reduced if we had a better understanding of the effects of childhood hearing impairment on speech perception. Thus the long term objective of our program of research is to understand how childhood hearing impairment affects the development of the processes and representations underlying accurate speech perception. The proposed research is a logical follow-up to our studies of Stroop (semantic) interference and extends these studies to address some phonological issues as well. The logic of the proposed studies is that important information about the mental representations and processes involved in speech perception may be revealed by studying the effects of semantically- or phonologically-related auditory probes on picture naming (picture word task). Pilot data suggest that children with hearing impairment show a different degree and time course of semantic and phonological processing interactions. We present a model of performance on our task and hypothesize about some possible modifications of the model that might account for results in the children with hearing impairment. To the extent that the pilot data are representative, results on the picture word test should yield important insights into whether the development of speech processing is delayed or qualitatively changed in the presence of childhood hearing impairment. Such data should provide information of clinical value in terms of understanding the nature of speech perception by hearing impaired children, thus helping us to develop better programs for promoting normal communication abilities. The data should provide information of theoretical value in terms of understanding the effects of differences in auditory experience on the development of speech processing.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01DC000421-11
Application #
2733651
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZRG1-SEN (01))
Project Start
1989-04-01
Project End
2002-06-30
Budget Start
1998-07-01
Budget End
1999-06-30
Support Year
11
Fiscal Year
1998
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Texas-Dallas
Department
Other Health Professions
Type
Other Domestic Higher Education
DUNS #
City
Richardson
State
TX
Country
United States
Zip Code
75080
Jerger, Susan; Damian, Markus F; McAlpine, Rachel P et al. (2018) Visual speech fills in both discrimination and identification of non-intact auditory speech in children. J Child Lang 45:392-414
Jerger, Susan; Damian, Markus F; McAlpine, Rachel P et al. (2017) Visual speech alters the discrimination and identification of non-intact auditory speech in children with hearing loss. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol 94:127-137
Jerger, Susan; Damian, Markus F; Tye-Murray, Nancy et al. (2017) Children perceive speech onsets by ear and eye. J Child Lang 44:185-215
Jerger, Susan; Tye-Murray, Nancy; Damian, Markus F et al. (2016) Phonological Priming in Children with Hearing Loss: Effect of Speech Mode, Fidelity, and Lexical Status. Ear Hear 37:623-633
Jerger, Susan; Damian, Markus F; Tye-Murray, Nancy et al. (2014) Children use visual speech to compensate for non-intact auditory speech. J Exp Child Psychol 126:295-312
Jerger, Susan; Damian, Markus F; Mills, Candice et al. (2013) Effect of perceptual load on semantic access by speech in children. J Speech Lang Hear Res 56:388-403
Jerger, Susan; Tye-Murray, Nancy; Damian, Markus F et al. (2013) Effect of hearing loss on semantic access by auditory and audiovisual speech in children. Ear Hear 34:753-62
Jerger, Susan; Tye-Murray, Nancy; Abdi, Hervé (2009) Role of visual speech in phonological processing by children with hearing loss. J Speech Lang Hear Res 52:412-34
Jerger, Susan; Damian, Markus F; Spence, Melanie J et al. (2009) Developmental shifts in children's sensitivity to visual speech: a new multimodal picture-word task. J Exp Child Psychol 102:40-59
Mehta, Jyutika; Jerger, Susan; Jerger, James et al. (2009) Electrophysiological correlates of word comprehension: event-related potential (ERP) and independent component analysis (ICA). Int J Audiol 48:1-11

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