| 1. |
- Brännström, Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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Children's Subjective Ratings and Opinions of Typical and Dysphonic Voice After Performing a Language Comprehension Task in Background Noise.
- 2015
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Ingår i: Journal of Voice. - : Elsevier BV. - 1873-4588 .- 0892-1997. ; 29:5, s. 624-630
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective Previous studies suggest that dysphonic voices are perceived more negatively than typical voices, and it is possible that vocal perception influences academic achievement and comprehension. This study assessed children's subjective ratings and opinions of a typical and dysphonic voice after performing a language comprehension task in background noise. It also explored if subjective ratings were related to performance in the comprehension task. Study Design Ninety-three 8-year-old children participated and were randomly allocated to two groups. Methods A digital version of the Test for Reception of Grammar, version 2 (TROG-2) was used. In TROG-2, the child listens to a sentence and then, out of four possible pictures, selects the picture that corresponds to the sentence content. Each sentence assesses a specific grammatical construction. Test instructions were recorded using one speaker with two different voice qualities (typical voice and provoked dysphonic voice). One group of children performed TROG-2 with the typical voice and the other with the dysphonic voice, both presented in a multitalker babble noise using earphones. All children rated their subjective perception of the voice. Results The dysphonic voice received poorer ratings than the typical voice. Children making more positive ratings of the voice performed better on earlier blocks in TROG-2, but only in the typical voice group. Conclusions Children perceived the dysphonic voice more negatively even when listening to the same speaker. Performance is related to the perception of the voice, but only when the perceptual load of the task-relevant stimuli is sufficiently low.
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| 2. |
- Brännström, Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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Should the acceptable noise level be considered to be an acceptable noise range?
- 2013
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Ingår i: The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America. - : Acoustical Society of America (ASA). - 1520-8524 .- 0001-4966. ; 134:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The acceptable noise level (ANL) test is used to quantify the amount of competing background noise (BNL) that a listener is willing to accept when listening to speech at the most comfortable level (MCL). ANL is calculated by subtracting the BNL from the MCL. Most studies show large intersubject ANL variability and a few also demonstrate large intrasubject variability. Very few predictor variables for ANL have been identified and it has been proposed that the ANL depends on an inherent characteristic of the listener. However, some of the variability seems to depend on poor precision of the ANL test. After removing the effect of poor precision, some variability still remains. One possible explanation for these findings may be that the ANL is not a single level but a range of levels. Using recent data, this presentation examines the notion of an acceptable noise range.
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| 3. |
- Brännström, Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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The acceptable noise level: The effect of repeated measurements.
- 2014
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Ingår i: International Journal of Audiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1708-8186 .- 1499-2027. ; 53:1, s. 21-29
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: This study explores if increasing number of repetitions might improve the precision of the acceptable noise level (ANL) test. Design: We measured twelve ANL repetitions, i.e. four complete ANL tests (4 × 3 repetitions), at one session using diotic presentation and a non-semantic ANL version. Study sample: Thirty-two normal-hearing adults. Results: Small order and fatigue effects were seen. We used the coefficient of repeatability (CR) to assess the repeatability; CRs ranged between 3.9 and 7.6 dB for the four ANL tests. Using the twelve ANL repetitions we removed the variability of the ANL across subjects by normalizing the data to the individual mean ANL for the twelve repetitions. The mean normalized ANL across the subjects rapidly approached the ANL normalized to the individual mean for the 12 repetitions (0 dB), and after three repetitions the SD seemed to be stable at about 3 dB. Conclusions: The findings suggest that both order and fatigue affect the ANL. The findings also suggest that it may be more accurate to speak of an acceptable noise range than ANL. These findings have large implications for how we understand acceptable noise and it would explain a large part of the variability seen among normal-hearing and perhaps hearing-impaired subjects.
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| 4. |
- Brännström, Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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The effect of repeated measurements and working memory on the most comfortable level in the ANL test.
- 2014
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Ingår i: International Journal of Audiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1708-8186 .- 1499-2027. ; 53:11, s. 787-795
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: To study the effect of a large number of repetitions on the most comfortable level (MCL) when doing the acceptable noise level (ANL) test, and explore if MCL variability is related to central cognitive processes. Design: Twelve MCL repetitions were measured within the ANL test using interleaved methodology during one session using a non-semantic version. Phonological (PWM) and visuospatial working memory (VSWM) was measured. Study sample: Thirty-two normal-hearing adults. Results: Repeated measures ANOVA, intraclass correlations, and the coefficient of repeatability (CR) were used to assess the repeatability. Repeated measures ANOVA and CR indicated poor agreement between the two first repetitions. After excluding the first repetition, analyses showed that the MCL in the ANL test is reliable. A negative association was found between PWM and MCL variability indicating that subjects with higher PWM show less variability. Conclusions: The findings suggest that, after excluding the first repetition, the MCL in the ANL test is reliable. A single repetition of the MCL in the ANL test should be avoided. If an interleaved methodology is used, a single ANL repetition should be added prior to the actual testing. The findings also suggest that MCL variability is associated to PWM but not VSWM.
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| 5. |
- Brännström, Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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The influence of voice quality on sentence processing and recall performance in school-age children with normal hearing
- 2018
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Ingår i: Speech, Language and Hearing. - 2050-571X. ; 21:1, s. 1-9
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Previous findings suggest that working memory capacity (WMC) is influenced by a dysphonic voice quality. The present study examines the influence of voice quality on sentence processing and word recall in a working memory task. Fifty-seven children (8:1–9:1 years old) with normal hearing participated. Working memory capacity (WMC) was assessed using a competing language processing task (CLPT) which consists of a sentence processing segment (judgements of semantic acceptability in sentences) and a final word recall segment. All children completed two versions of the CLPT; once listening to a typical voice and once listening to a vocally loading induced dysphonic voice. The two voices were recorded from the same female speaker. In addition, the children’s executive functioning was assessed using Elithorn’s mazes. The dysphonic voice quality significantly decreases scores on the sentence processing segment but not on the recall segment. Children with better executive functioning (i.e., response inhibition, organizing, processing, and planning) were less disturbed by the dysphonic voice in the recall segment. Children’s judgements of semantic acceptability in sentences in a working memory task are affected by a dysphonic voice quality, but not the recall segment (the measure of WMC). However, children with lower executive functioning may be more disturbed by the dysphonic voice. These findings suggest that listening to a dysphonic voice seems to require more cognitive resources than listening to a typical voice, but only when the task is sufficiently easy to allow for allocation of cognitive resources to process the degraded signal content. Abbreviations: CLPT: Competing language processing task; ISTS: International speech test signal; RMS: root-mean-square; SLP: speech and language pathologists; WMC: Working memory capacity
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| 6. |
- Brännström, K. Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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Extended high-frequency pure tone hearing thresholds and core executive functions
- 2018
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Ingår i: International Journal of Audiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1499-2027 .- 1708-8186. ; 57:9, s. 639-645
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: To examine the relationship between extended high-frequency pure tone hearing thresholds (frequencies 10 to 14 kHz) and working memory capacity (WMC), inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility. Design: Experimental study measuring correlations between different high-frequency hearing threshold measures and cognitive measures. Study: Pure tone audiometry was assessed in the extended high-frequency (frequencies 10, 12.5 and 14 kHz). Subjects were also tested regarding WMC, inhibitory control (response inhibition), and cognitive flexibility (information updating and shifting ability). Sample: Forty-three subjects between 20 and 29 years old with normal hearing (≤ 20 dB HL) in the frequency range between 0.125 to 8 kHz. Results: No significant correlations were seen between high-frequency hearing thresholds defined as average best and worst ear high-frequency hearing thresholds and the cognitive measures. Differences between the best and the worst ear showed significant negative correlations with inhibitory control and global executive function (combination score for WMC, inhibitory control and cognitive flexibility). Conclusions: The present study suggests that global executive functions, more specifically response inhibition, and hearing threshold asymmetry in the extended high-frequency range are interrelated.
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| 7. |
- Brännström, K. Jonas, et al.
(författare)
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Hearing thresholds and cognitive flexibility in young healthy individuals with normal hearing
- 2020
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Ingår i: International Journal of Audiology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1499-2027 .- 1708-8186. ; 59:8, s. 583-589
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Objective: Pure tone audiometry may seem to be a relatively easy task for the participant but it may involve cognitive as well as sensory abilities. The aim of this study is to examine the relationship between hearing thresholds in the frequency range 0.125–8 kHz and the core executive function cognitive flexibility in healthy individuals with normal hearing. Design: Experimental study measuring correlations between different pure-tone hearing threshold measures and cognitive flexibility. Pure tone air conduction audiometry (frequencies 0.125–8.0 kHz) and two tests of cognitive flexibility (information updating and shifting ability) were conducted. Study sample: Seventy-two subjects (aged between 21 and 36) with normal hearing (<20 dB HL) for the tested frequencies. Results: Four measures of average pure tone hearing thresholds were negatively correlated with cognitive flexibility. Conclusions: Pure-tone air conduction hearing thresholds seem to be related to cognitive flexibility in healthy individuals with normal hearing.
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| 8. |
- Jonas Brännström, K., et al.
(författare)
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Listening effort : Order effects and core executive functions
- 2018
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Ingår i: Journal of the American Academy of Audiology. - : Georg Thieme Verlag KG. - 1050-0545 .- 2157-3107. ; 29:8, s. 734-747
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Listening effort seems to depend on input-related listening demands and several factors internal to the individual listener. Input-related demands may be listening in noise compared with listening in quiet, and internal factors may be cognitive functions. Purpose: The purpose was to apply measures of listening effort and perceived listening effort in participants with normal hearing, to determine if there are any presentation order effects, and to explore the relationship between listening effort measured as accuracy, response times, efficiency of information encoding into long-term memory, perceived listening effort, and core executive functions. Research design: A within-subject design with repeated measures was used and a study of relationships between variables was made. Study sample: Thirty-two healthy adults with normal hearing. Data collection and analysis: Participants were tested individually by a listening task using a dual-task paradigm. The listening task was performed in quiet and in multitalker babble noise at 10 dB signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). Perceived listening effort and core executive functions (working memory, inhibitory control, and cognitive flexibility) were also assessed. Results: The measures of listening effort (correct responses, response times, and immediate and delayed listening comprehension) failed to demonstrate increased listening effort in multitalker babble noise (10 dB SNR) compared with quiet, although a significant test order effect was seen for correct responses indicating that participants who first listened in noise did not improve in quiet. Perceived listening effort increased significantly in noise compared with quiet. No relationship was found between measures of listening effort and ratings of perceived listening effort. Working memory and cognitive flexibility were not related to ratings of perceived listening effort. In contrast, better inhibitory control was related to higher ratings in both quiet and in noise. Conclusions: It is possible that the SNR and measures used were not as sensitive as required to measure listening effort behaviorally. In the present experimental setup, prior noise exposure impedes the beneficial effects of performing a task in quiet. Self-reports seem to provide a valid measure of perceived listening effort that is related to the individual's inhibitory control. The present findings suggest that participants with better inhibitory control are more susceptible to the task demand level both in quiet and in noise.
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| 9. |
- Lyberg Åhlander, Viveka, et al.
(författare)
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Are children with stronger cognitive capacity more or less disturbed by classroom noise and dysphonic teachers?
- 2015
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Ingår i: International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1754-9515 .- 1754-9507. ; 17:6, s. 577-588
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Purpose: This study aimed to explore if dysphonic voice quality affects children's performance on a language comprehension test, the Test for Reception of Grammar-2 (TROG-2), performed in simultaneous background noise (non-semantic babble). A further aim was to investigate the role of Working Memory Capacity (WMC) and Executive Functioning (EF) in coping with the voice against a background of babble conditions. Method: Ninety-three mainstreamed 8 year old children with typical language development were tested for WMC and EF. Two groups of children (n = 47/46) were formed and presented with recordings of TROG-2 instructions read by one female speaker: one group was presented with recordings with induced dysphonic voice quality, the other with recordings of typical voice. Both groups listened to the voice recordings in competing babble noise at a Signal-to-Noise Ratio of + 10 dB. Result: Significant differences were found for the interaction between cognitive capacity and the TROG-2 results in relation to the voice conditions. In the dysphonic voice condition, children with better WMC results scored higher at the easier comprehension tasks. In the typical voice condition, children with better WMC and EF results scored higher on the more difficult tasks. Seventeen per cent of the variance for the TROG-2 results was explained by the WMC and EF results. There was no overall effect on the children's performance depending of voice condition. Conclusion: The effect of the speaker's voice quality on children's performance varies depending on the prevalence of background babble noise and on the task demands. The dysphonic voice and babble noise seem to demand allocation of cognitive capacities at the cost of language comprehension.
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| 10. |
- Sahlén, Birgitta, et al.
(författare)
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Is children’s listening effort in background noise influenced by the speaker’s voice quality?
- 2018
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Ingår i: Logopedics Phoniatrics Vocology. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1401-5439 .- 1651-2022. ; 43:2, s. 47-55
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The present study aims at exploring the influence of voice quality on listening effort in children performing a language comprehension test with sentences of increasing difficulty. Listening effort is explored in relation to gender ( = cisgender). The study has a between-groups design. Ninety-three mainstreamed children aged 8;2 to 9;3 with typical language development participated. The children were randomly assigned to two groups (n = 46/47) with equal allocation of boys and girls and for the analysis to four groups depending of gender and voice condition. Working memory capacity and executive functions were tested in quiet. A digital version of a language comprehension test (the TROG-2) was used to measure the effect of voice quality on listening effort, measured as response time in a forced-choice paradigm. The groups listened to sentences through recordings of the same female voice, one group with a typical voice and one with a dysphonic voice, both in competing multi-talker babble noise. Response times were logged after a time buffer between the sentence-ending and indication of response. There was a significant increase in response times with increased task difficulty and response times between the two voice conditions differed significantly. The girls in the dysphonic condition were slower with increasing task difficulty. A dysphonic voice clearly adds to the noise burden and listening effort is greater in girls than in boys when the teacher speaks with dysphonic voice in a noisy background. These findings might mirror gender differences as for coping strategies in challenging contexts and have important implications for education.
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