Development and growth of selected speech perception and speech production skills will be evaluated and compared in three separate groups of profoundly deaf children who wear cochlear implants, vibrotactile aids, or conventional hearing aids. A repeated- measures design will be used in which each subject will serve as his own control. Children in the three groups will be matched on relevant medical, audiological, and educational variables. Each child will be enrolled in an individualized aural (re)habilitation program throughout the three-year study, and efforts will be made to ensure that subjects in each group receive comparable exposure to their sensory aids. Experiments will be aimed at assessing the relative potential of each device to: (1) enhance suprasegmental and segmental features of speech, (2) alter the primary modality (acoustic vs. visual) used for the perception of speech, (3) supplement lipreading skills, (4) increase attention to task, and (5) aid in the production and intelligibility of the children's speech. Results from the project are expected to facilitate early and effective intervention for acquisition of receptive and expressive communicative skills in deaf children, and to have implications for selection and training strategies and the design of sensory aids for all profoundly hearing-impaired children.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
1R01NS024875-01
Application #
3409846
Study Section
Hearing Research Study Section (HAR)
Project Start
1987-04-01
Project End
1990-03-31
Budget Start
1987-04-01
Budget End
1988-03-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
1987
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Indiana University-Purdue University at Indianapolis
Department
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
005436803
City
Indianapolis
State
IN
Country
United States
Zip Code
46202
Miyamoto, R T; Osberger, M J; Robbins, A J et al. (1989) Comparison of sensory aids in deaf children. Ann Otol Rhinol Laryngol Suppl 142:2-7
Miyamoto, R T; Myres, W A; Robbins, W A et al. (1988) The role of cochlear implants in deaf children. Scand Audiol Suppl 30:121-6