The long term objectives of our research are to solve the puzzle of why hearing-impaired listeners achieve, variously, good or poor word recognition scores when signals are presented at suprathreshold levels and to define signal modifications, other than amplification, which will benefit the hearing-impaired listener. The short-term objectives of the proposed research are: (1) to assess the contributions of spectral tilt at signal onset, burst/voice onset time (VOT) duration, and burst/formant frequency information to the identification of /bdgptk/ when combined with /iau/ and created to simulate male and female voices presented both in quiet and against background noise; and (2) to assess how the listeners' age, hearing impairment, temporal resolution capacity, and prior hearing experience (i.e., age of onset of impairment) affect usage of the several cues to place of articulation. Our methodology involves creating stimuli by factorily combining the frequency, tilt, and temporal cues for labial, alveolar, and velar place of articulation. For some signals all of the cues will be appropriate for a given place, while for others, one or more of the cues will be inappropriate for that place. Our pilot data demonstrate that the identification of these signals differentiates normal and hearing-impaired listeners. For example, the information provided by the tilt of the onset spectrum and by burst/VOT duration affects the performance of hearing-impaired listeners more than normal hearing listeners. This outcome, in turn, suggests that strategies for signal modification, other than simple amplification, may be of benefit to hearing-impaired individuals.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
5R01NS015457-05
Application #
3396271
Study Section
Hearing Research Study Section (HAR)
Project Start
1981-09-01
Project End
1987-11-30
Budget Start
1985-12-01
Budget End
1986-11-30
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
1986
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Arizona State University-Tempe Campus
Department
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
188435911
City
Tempe
State
AZ
Country
United States
Zip Code
85287
Dorman, M F; Hannley, M T; Dankowski, K et al. (1989) Word recognition by 50 patients fitted with the Symbion multichannel cochlear implant. Ear Hear 10:44-9
Dorman, M; Dankowski, K; McCandless, G et al. (1989) Consonant recognition as a function of the number of channels of stimulation by patients who use the Symbion cochlear implant. Ear Hear 10:288-91
Lindholm, J M; Dorman, M; Taylor, B E et al. (1988) Stimulus factors influencing the identification of voiced stop consonants by normal-hearing and hearing-impaired adults. J Acoust Soc Am 83:1608-14
Dorman, M F; Hannley, M T; McCandless, G A et al. (1988) Auditory/phonetic categorization with the Symbion multichannel cochlear implant. J Acoust Soc Am 84:501-10
Dubno, J R; Dorman, M F (1987) Effects of spectral flattening on vowel identification. J Acoust Soc Am 82:1503-11
Dorman, M F; Lindholm, J M; Hannley, M T et al. (1987) Vowel intelligibility in the absence of the acoustic reflex: performance-intensity characteristics. J Acoust Soc Am 81:562-4
Leek, M R; Dorman, M F; Summerfield, Q (1987) Minimum spectral contrast for vowel identification by normal-hearing and hearing-impaired listeners. J Acoust Soc Am 81:148-54
Dorman, M; Cedar, I; Hannley, M et al. (1986) Influence of the acoustic reflex on vowel recognition. J Speech Hear Res 29:420-4
Hannley, M; Jerger, J (1985) Patterns of phoneme identification error in cochlear and eighth-nerve disorders. Audiology 24:157-66
Dorman, M F; Marton, K; Hannley, M T et al. (1985) Phonetic identification by elderly normal and hearing-impaired listeners. J Acoust Soc Am 77:664-70

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