| 1. |
- Alantie, Sonja, et al.
(author)
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Is Old Age Just a Number in Language Skills? : Language Performance and Its Relation to Age, Education, Gender, Cognitive Screening, and Dentition in Very Old Finnish Speakers
- 2022
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 65:1, s. 274-291
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose:This study reports on how very old (VO) Finnish people without dementia perform in the Western Aphasia Battery (WAB) and two verbal fluency tasks and which demographic factors predict the performance.Method:The study included fifty 80- to 100-year-old community-dwelling Finnish speakers with no dementing illnesses or speech-language disabilities, who completed the WAB and two verbal fluency tasks. Multifactorial statistical analyses with recursive partitioning were carried out to determine the significant predictors out of five predictor variables (age, gender, education, dentition, and Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE]) for four response variables (WAB Aphasia Quotient [AQ], Language Quotient [LQ], semantic, and phonemic word fluencies).Results:Overall, individual variation was notable in VO speakers. All predictor variables were statistically significantly associated with one or more of the language skills. Age was the most significant predictor; the critical age of 85–86 years was associated with a decline in WAB-AQ and semantic fluency. Poor dentition and the MMSE score both predicted a decline in WAB-LQ and phonemic fluency. A high level of education was positively associated with the skills of the best-performing individuals in WAB-AQ, WAB-LQ, and semantic fluency.Conclusions:VO age is a significant factor contributing to language performance. However, a younger age, a good cognitive performance, intact teeth, and a higher educational level also seem to have a preservative power as regards language skills. Gender differences should be interpreted with caution. The results of this study provide culture- and language-specific normative data, which aids in differentiating typical aging from the signs of acute or degenerative neuropathology to ensure appropriate medical and therapeutic interventions.
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| 2. |
- Aliakbaryhosseinabadi, Susan, et al.
(author)
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The Effects of Noise and Simulated Conductive Hearing Loss on Physiological Response Measures During Interactive Conversations
- 2023
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : AMER SPEECH-LANGUAGE-HEARING ASSOC. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 66:10, s. 4009-4024
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: The purpose of this work was to study the effects of background noise and hearing attenuation associated with earplugs on three physiological measures, assumed to be markers of effort investment and arousal, during interactive communication. Method: Twelve pairs of older people (average age of 63.2 years) with ageadjusted normal hearing took part in a face-to-face communication to solve a Diapix task. Communication was held in different levels of babble noise (0, 60, and 70 dBA) and with two levels of hearing attenuation (0 and 25 dB) in quiet. The physiological measures obtained included pupil size, heart rate variability, and skin conductance. In addition, subjective ratings of perceived communication success, frustration, and effort were obtained. Results: Ratings of perceived success, frustration, and effort confirmed that communication was more difficult in noise and with approximately 25-dB hearing attenuation and suggested that the implemented levels of noise and hearing attenuation resulted in comparable communication difficulties. Background noise at 70 dBA and hearing attenuation both led to an initial increase in pupil size (associated with effort), but only the effect of the background noise was sustained throughout the conversation. The 25-dB hearing attenuation led to a significant decrease of the high-frequency power of heart rate variability and a significant increase of skin conductance level, measured as the average z value of the electrodermal activity amplitude. Conclusion: This study demonstrated that several physiological measures appear to be viable indicators of changing communication conditions, with pupillometry and cardiovascular as well as electrodermal measures potentially being markers of communication difficulty.
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| 3. |
- Beechey, Timothy, et al.
(author)
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Hearing Aid Amplification Reduces Communication Effort of People With Hearing Impairment and Their Conversation Partners
- 2020
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 63:4, s. 1299-1311
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- ObjectivesThis study investigates the hypothesis that hearing aid amplification reduces effort within conversation for both hearing aid wearers and their communication partners. Levels of effort, in the form of speech production modifications, required to maintain successful spoken communication in a range of acoustic environments are compared to earlier reported results measured in unaided conversation conditions.DesignFifteen young adult normal-hearing participants and 15 older adult hearing-impaired participants were tested in pairs. Each pair consisted of one young normal-hearing participant and one older hearing-impaired participant. Hearing-impaired participants received directional hearing aid amplification, according to their audiogram, via a master hearing aid with gain provided according to the NAL-NL2 fitting formula. Pairs of participants were required to take part in naturalistic conversations through the use of a referential communication task. Each pair took part in five conversations, each of 5-min duration. During each conversation, participants were exposed to one of five different realistic acoustic environments presented through highly open headphones. The ordering of acoustic environments across experimental blocks was pseudorandomized. Resulting recordings of conversational speech were analyzed to determine the magnitude of speech modifications, in terms of vocal level and spectrum, produced by normal-hearing talkers as a function of both acoustic environment and the degree of high-frequency average hearing impairment of their conversation partner.ResultsThe magnitude of spectral modifications of speech produced by normal-hearing talkers during conversations with aided hearing-impaired interlocutors was smaller than the speech modifications observed during conversations between the same pairs of participants in the absence of hearing aid amplification.ConclusionsThe provision of hearing aid amplification reduces the effort required to maintain communication in adverse conditions. This reduction in effort provides benefit to hearing-impaired individuals and also to the conversation partners of hearing-impaired individuals. By considering the impact of amplification on both sides of dyadic conversations, this approach contributes to an increased understanding of the likely impact of hearing impairment on everyday communication.
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| 4. |
- Beechey, Timothy, et al.
(author)
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Hearing Impairment Increases Communication Effort During Conversations in Noise
- 2020
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 63:1, s. 305-320
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PurposeThis article describes patterns of speech modifications produced by talkers as a function of the degree of hearing impairment of communication partners during naturalistic conversations in noise. An explanation of observed speech modifications is proposed in terms of a generalization of the concept of effort. This account complements existing theories of listening effort by extending the concept of effort to the domain of interactive communication.MethodTwenty young adult normal hearing participants and 20 older adult hearing-impaired participants were tested in pairs. Each pair consisted of 1 young normal hearing participant and 1 older hearing-impaired participant. Pairs of participants took part in naturalistic conversations through the use of a referential communication task. Each pair completed a 5-min conversation in each of 5 different realistic acoustic environments.ResultsTalkers modified their speech, in terms of level and spectrum, in a gradient manner reflecting both the acoustic environment and the degree of hearing impairment of their conversation partner. All pairs of participants were able to maintain communication across all acoustic environments regardless of degree of hearing impairment and the level of environmental noise. Contrasting effects of noise and hearing impairment on speech production revealed distinct patterns of speech modifications produced by normal hearing and hearing-impaired talkers during conversation. This may reflect the fact that only the speech modifications produced by normal hearing talkers functioned to compensate for the hearing impairment of a conversation partner.ConclusionsThe data presented support the concept of communication effort as a dynamic feedback system between conversation participants. Additionally, these results provide insight into the nature of realistic speech signals, which are encountered by people with hearing impairment in everyday communication scenarios.
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| 5. |
- Bolzer, Adrien, et al.
(author)
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The Development of the “Telislife” Questionnaire for the Evaluation of Telephone Use in Cochlear Implant Users
- 2021
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech - Language - Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 64:1, s. 186-195
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose For cochlear implant users, the ability to use the telephone is often seen as an important landmark during rehabilitation and an indicator of cochlear implant benefit. The goal of this study was to develop a short questionnaire exploring the ability to use the telephone in cochlear implant users, named Telislife, and test it in a group of experienced users.Method This prospective multicenter study was based on the completion of self-administrated questionnaires. The Telislife includes 20 items using a 5-point Likert scale for answers. Speech recognition scores were obtained with monosyllabic word lists at 70 dB HL. Quality of life was evaluated with the Nijmegen Cochlear Implant Questionnaire. This study included 55 adult patients wearing a cochlear implant for over 1 year.Results The Telislife questionnaire showed excellent reliability (Cronbach's α = .91). A significant correlation was found between Telislife scores and Nijmegen Cochlear Implant Questionnaire scores (r = .69, p < .001) and speech recognition scores (r = .35, p = .007).Conclusion Given significant correlations between Telislife scores and both speech recognition and quality of life and given its short form, the Telislife questionnaire appears to be a reliable tool to evaluate cochlear implant outcomes in clinical practice.
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| 6. |
- Carlie, Johanna, et al.
(author)
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Development of an Auditory Passage Comprehension Task for Swedish Primary School Children of Cultural and Linguistic Diversity
- 2021
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In: Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1558-9102 .- 1092-4388. ; 64:10
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose This study reports on the development of an auditory passage comprehension task for Swedish primary school children of cultural and linguistic diversity. It also reports on their performance on the task in quiet and in noise. Method Eighty-eight children aged 7-9 years and showing normal hearing participated. The children were divided into three groups based on presumed language exposure: 13 children were categorized as Swedish-speaking monolinguals, 19 children were categorized as simultaneous bilinguals, and 56 children were categorized as sequential bilinguals. No significant difference in working memory capacity was seen between the three language groups. Two passages and associated multiple-choice questions were developed. During development of the passage comprehension task, steps were taken to reduce the impact of culture-specific prior experience and knowledge on performance. This was achieved by using the story grammar principles, universal topics and plots, and simple language that avoided complex or unusual grammatical structures and words. Results The findings indicate no significant difference between the two passages and similar response distributions. Passage comprehension performance was significantly better in quiet than in noise, regardless of language exposure group. The monolinguals outperformed both simultaneous and sequential bilinguals in both listening conditions. Conclusions Because the task was designed to minimize the effect of cultural knowledge on auditory passage comprehension, this suggests that compared with monolinguals, both simultaneous and sequential bilinguals have a disadvantage in auditory passage comprehension. As expected, the findings demonstrate that noise has a negative effect on auditory passage comprehension. The magnitude of this effect does not relate to language exposure. The developed auditory passage comprehension task seems suitable for assessing auditory passage comprehension in primary school children of linguistic and cultural diversity.
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| 7. |
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| 8. |
- Clark, Grace T., et al.
(author)
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Word Learning With Orthographic Support in Nonspeaking and Minimally Speaking School-Age Autistic Children
- 2023
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : AMER SPEECH-LANGUAGE-HEARING ASSOC. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 66:6, s. 2047-2063
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: Previous research has demonstrated that typically developing children, verbal children with a diagnosis of autism, children with Down syndrome, children with developmental language disorder, and children with dyslexia can all benefit from orthographic support during word learning tasks. This study sought to determine if minimally speaking or nonspeaking children with a diagnosis of autism would also demonstrate an orthographic facilitation effect during a computer-based remote word learning task. Method: Twenty-two school-age children with a diagnosis of autism and little to no spoken language learned four novel words by contrasting the words with known objects. Two novel words were taught with orthographic support present, and two were taught without orthographic support. Participants were exposed to the words a total of 12 times and then given an immediate posttest to assess identification. Parent report measures of receptive vocabulary, expressive vocabulary, autism symptomatology, and reading skills were also collected. Results: During learning tasks, participants performed equally well whether orthographic support was given or not. For the posttest, however, participants performed significantly better for words that were taught with orthographic support. The presence of orthography improved accuracy and supported a greater number of participants to reach the passing criterion compared to the absence of orthography. Orthographic representations aided the word learning of those with lower expressive language significantly more than those with higher expressive language. Conclusions: Minimally speaking or nonspeaking children with a diagnosis of autism benefit from orthographic support when learning new words. Further investigation is warranted to determine if this effect holds during face-to-face interactions using augmentative and alternative communication systems.
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| 9. |
- Elmazoska, Iris, et al.
(author)
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Associations Between Recreational Noise Exposure and Hearing Function in Adolescents and Young Adults : A Systematic Review
- 2024
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 67:2, s. 688-710
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PURPOSE: There is an increasing concern regarding hazardous recreational noise exposure among adolescents and young adults. Daily exposure to loud sound levels over a long period of time can increase the risk of noise-induced hearing loss. The full extent of the impact of recreational noise on hearing is not yet fully understood. The purpose of this review was to synthesize research that investigated hearing function in relation to recreational noise exposure in adolescents and young adults.METHOD: A systematic literature search of five databases covering the years 2000-2023 was performed. The articles included investigated audiological measurements of hearing function in relation to recreational noise exposure.RESULTS: Four hundred sixty records were identified, of which 20 met the inclusion criteria and were included in the results. This review showed that although some recreational noise activities can be potentially harmful, there is an unclear relationship between exposure and outcome. Some findings indicated hearing threshold shifts or reduced otoacoustic emission amplitudes after recreational noise exposure, but most changes were short term and in the extended high-frequency range.CONCLUSIONS: There seemed to be inconsistencies regarding the utilization of methods of measuring exposure and outcome between studies. This might be one reason for the differing results in studies on the reported impact on hearing function from recreational noise exposure. To draw more certain conclusions about long-term effects, there is a need for longitudinal research that utilizes sound level measurements to assess low and high degrees of recreational noise exposure in relation to hearing function.SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.25114193.
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| 10. |
- Engelen, Marscha M., et al.
(author)
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The Association Between Stuttering Burden and Psychosocial Aspects of Life in Adults
- 2024
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 67:5, s. 1385-1399
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PURPOSE: Stuttering is a speech condition that can have a major impact on a person's quality of life. This descriptive study aimed to identify subgroups of people who stutter (PWS) based on stuttering burden and to investigate differences between these subgroups on psychosocial aspects of life.METHOD: The study included 618 adult participants who stutter. They completed a detailed survey examining stuttering symptomatology, impact of stuttering on anxiety, education and employment, experience of stuttering, and levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. A two-step cluster analytic procedure was performed to identify subgroups of PWS, based on self-report of stuttering frequency, severity, affect, and anxiety, four measures that together inform about stuttering burden.RESULTS: We identified a high- (n = 230) and a low-burden subgroup (n = 372). The high-burden subgroup reported a significantly higher impact of stuttering on education and employment, and higher levels of general depression, anxiety, stress, and overall impact of stuttering. These participants also reported that they trialed more different stuttering therapies than those with lower burden.CONCLUSIONS: Our results emphasize the need to be attentive to the diverse experiences and needs of PWS, rather than treating them as a homogeneous group. Our findings also stress the importance of personalized therapeutic strategies for individuals with stuttering, considering all aspects that could influence their stuttering burden. People with high-burden stuttering might, for example, have a higher need for psychological therapy to reduce stuttering-related anxiety. People with less emotional reactions but severe speech distortions may also have a moderate to high burden, but they may have a higher need for speech techniques to communicate with more ease. Future research should give more insights into the therapeutic needs of people highly burdened by their stuttering.SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.25582980.
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| 11. |
- Hjortdal, Anna, et al.
(author)
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Swift Prosodic Modulation of Lexical Access : Brain Potentials From Three North Germanic Language Varieties
- 2024
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In: Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research. - 1558-9102. ; 67:2, s. 400-414
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: According to most models of spoken word recognition, listeners probabilistically activate a set of lexical candidates, which is incrementally updated as the speech signal unfolds. Speech carries segmental (speech sound) as well as suprasegmental (prosodic) information. The role of the latter in spoken word recognition is less clear. We investigated how suprasegments (tone and voice quality) in three North Germanic language varieties affected lexi-cal access by scrutinizing temporally fine-grained neurophysiological effects of lexical uncertainty and information gain. Method: Three event-related potential (ERP) studies were reanalyzed. In all vari-eties investigated, suprasegments are associated with specific word endings. Swedish has two lexical “word accents” realized as pitch falls with different tim-ings across dialects. In Danish, the distinction is in voice quality. We combined pronunciation lexica and frequency lists to calculate estimates of lexical uncer-tainty about an unfolding word and information gain upon hearing a supraseg-mental cue and the segment upon which it manifests. We used single-trial mixed-effects regression models run every 4 ms. Results: Only lexical uncertainty showed solid results: a frontal effect at 150–400 ms after suprasegmental cue onset and a later posterior effect after 200 ms. While a model including only segmental information mostly performed better, it was outperformed by the suprasegmental model at 200–330 ms at frontal sites. Conclusions: The study points to suprasegmental cues contributing to lexical access over and beyond segments after around 200 ms in the North Germanic varieties investigated. Furthermore, the findings indicate that a previously reported “pre-activation negativity” predominantly reflects forward-looking processing.
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| 12. |
- Holmberg, Jenny, et al.
(author)
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Exploring motives and perceived barriers for voice modification : the views of transgender and gender-diverse voice clients
- 2023
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech Language Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 66:7, s. 2246-2259
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: To date, transgender and gender-diverse voice clients' perceptions and individual goals have been missing in discussions and research on gender-affirming voice therapy. Little is, therefore, known about the client's expectations of therapy outcomes and how these are met by treatments developed from views of vocal gender as perceived by cisgender persons. This study aimed to explore clients' individual motives and perceived barriers to undertaking gender-affirming voice therapy.Method: Individual, semistructured interviews with 15 transgender and gender-diverse voice clients considering voice therapy were conducted and explored using qualitative content analysis.Results: Three themes were identified during the analysis of the participants' narratives. In the first theme, “the incongruent voice setting the rules,” the contribution of the voice on the experienced gender dysphoria is put in focus. The second theme, “to reach a voice of my own choice,” centers around anticipated personal gains using a modified voice. The third theme, “a voice out of reach,” relates to worries and restricting factors for not being able to reach one's set goals for voice modification.Conclusions: The interviews clearly indicate a need for a person-centered voice therapy that starts from the individuals' expressed motives for modifying the voice yet also are affirmative of anticipated difficulties related to voice modification. We recommend that these themes should form the basis of the pretherapy joint discussion between the voice client and the speech-language pathologist to ensure therapy goals that are realistic and relevant to the client.
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| 13. |
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| 14. |
- Iob, Naomi Anna, et al.
(author)
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Effects of Speech Characteristics on Electroglottographic and Instrumental Acoustic Voice Analysis Metrics in Women With Structural Dysphonia Before and After Treatment
- 2024
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech Language Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; , s. 1-22
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: Literature suggests a dependency of the acoustic metrics, smoothed cepstral peak prominence (CPPS) and harmonics-to-noise ratio (HNR), on human voice loudness and fundamental frequency (fo). Even though this has been explained with different oscillatory patterns of the vocal folds, so far, it has not been specifically investigated. In the present work, the influence of three elicitation levels, calibrated sound pressure level (SPL), fo and vowel on the electroglottographic (EGG) and time-differentiated EGG (dEGG) metrics hybrid open quotient (OQ), dEGG OQ and peak dEGG, as well as on the acous-tic metrics CPPS and HNR, was examined, and their suitability for voice assess-ment was evaluated. Method: In a retrospective study, 29 women with a mean age of 25 years (± 8.9, range: 18–53) diagnosed with structural vocal fold pathologies were examined before and after voice therapy or phonosurgery. Both acoustic and EGG signals were recorded simultaneously during the phonation of the sustained vowels /ɑ/, /i/, and /u/ at three elicited levels of loudness (soft/comfortable/loud) and unconstrained fo conditions. Results: A linear mixed-model analysis showed a significant effect of elicitation effort levels on peak dEGG, HNR, and CPPS (all p < .01). Calibrated SPL significantly influenced HNR and CPPS (both p < .01). Furthermore, F0had asignificant effect on peak dEGG and CPPS (p < .0001). All metrics showed significant changes with regard to vowel (all p < .05). However, the treatment had no effect on the examined metrics, regardless of the treatment type (surgery vs. voice therapy). Conclusions: The value of the investigated metrics for voice assessment purposes when sampled without sufficient control of SPL and fo is limited, in that they are significantly influenced by the phonatory context, be it speech or elicited sustained vowels. Future studies should explore the diagnostic value of new data collation approaches such as voice mapping, which take SPL and fo effects into account.
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| 15. |
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| 16. |
- Oosthuizen, Ilze, et al.
(author)
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Patient-Reported Outcome Measures for Hearing Aid Benefit and Satisfaction : Content Validity and Readability
- 2023
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 66:10, s. 4117-4136
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PURPOSE: Numerous patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are available to measure hearing aid benefit and satisfaction. It is unclear to what extent currently available PROMs on hearing aid outcomes, often developed decades ago, meet current guidelines for good content validity and readability. This study evaluated the content validity and readability of PROMs that focus on perceived hearing aid benefit and/or satisfaction.METHOD: A literature review was conducted to identify eligible instruments. Content validity evaluation included mapping extracted questionnaire items to the World Health Organization's International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) framework. In addition, study design in content validity methodology was evaluated using the COnsensus-based Standards for the selection of health Measurement INstruments study design checklist for PROM instruments. Readability was estimated using the Simple Measure of Gobbledygook measure.RESULTS: Thirteen questionnaires were identified and evaluated. Item content focused primarily on the components of environmental factors as well as activity limitations and participation restrictions with less emphasis on body functions and personal factors. The content validity methodology analysis revealed an underuse or lack of reporting of a qualitative methodology in assessing patient and professional perspectives. All the included questionnaires exceeded the recommended sixth-grade reading level.CONCLUSIONS: The categories covered by hearing aid PROMs vary considerably, with no single instrument comprehensively covering all the key ICF components. Future development of hearing aid outcome measures should consider a mixed methodology approach for improved content validity and ensure an appropriate reading level.
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| 17. |
- Patel, Rita R., 1975-, et al.
(author)
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Quantitative and Qualitative Electroglottographic Wave Shape Differences in Children and Adults Using Voice Map-Based Analysis
- 2021
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 64:8, s. 2977-2995
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify the extent to which various measurements of contacting parameters differ between children and adults during habitual range and overlap vocal frequency/intensity, using voice map–based assessment of noninvasive electroglottography(EGG).Method: EGG voice maps were analyzed from 26 adults(22–45 years) and 22 children (4–8 years) during connected speech and vowel /a/ over the habitual range and the overlap vocal frequency/intensity from the voice range profile task on the vowel /a/. Mean and standard deviations of contact quotient by integration, normalized contacting speed, quotient of speed by integration, and cycle-rate sample entropy were obtained. Group differences were evaluated using the linear mixed model analysis for the habitual range connected speech and the vowel, whereas analysis of covariance was conducted for the overlap vocal frequency/intensity from the voice range profile task. Presence of a “knee” on the EGG wave shape was determined by visual inspection of the presence of convexity along the decontacting slope of the EGG pulse and the presence of the second derivative zero-crossing.Results: The contact quotient by integration, normalized contacting speed, quotient of speed by integration, and cycle-rate sample entropy were significantly different in children compared to (a) adult males for habitual range and(b) adult males and adult females for the overlap vocal frequency/intensity. None of the children had a “knee” on the decontacting slope of the EGG slope.Conclusion: EGG parameters of contact quotient by integration, normalized contacting speed, quotient of speed by integration, cycle-rate sample entropy, and absence of a “knee” on the decontacting slope characterize the waveshape differences between children and adults, whereas the normalized contacting speed, quotient of speed by integration, cycle-rate sample entropy, and presence of a “knee” on the downward pulse slope characterize the waveshape differences between adult males and adult females.Supplemental Material: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.15057345
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| 18. |
- Rönnberg, Jerker, 1953-, et al.
(author)
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Cognitive Hearing Science: Three Memory Systems, Two Approaches, and the Ease of Language Understanding Model
- 2021
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In: Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1558-9102. ; 64:2, s. 359-370
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- PurposeThe purpose of this study was to conceptualize the subtle balancing act between language input and prediction (cognitive priming of future input) to achieve understanding of communicated content. When understanding fails, reconstructive postdiction is initiated. Three memory systems play important roles: working memory (WM), episodic long-term memory (ELTM), and semantic long-term memory (SLTM). The axiom of the Ease of Language Understanding (ELU) model is that explicit WM resources are invoked by a mismatch between language input—in the form of rapid automatic multimodal binding of phonology—and multimodal phonological and lexical representations in SLTM. However, if there is a match between rapid automatic multimodal binding of phonology output and SLTM/ELTM representations, language processing continues rapidly and implicitly.Method and ResultsIn our first ELU approach, we focused on experimental manipulations of signal processing in hearing aids and background noise to cause a mismatch with LTM representations; both resulted in increased dependence on WM. Our second—and main approach relevant for this review article—focuses on the relative effects of age-related hearing loss on the three memory systems. According to the ELU, WM is predicted to be frequently occupied with reconstruction of what was actually heard, resulting in a relative disuse of phonological/lexical representations in the ELTM and SLTM systems. The prediction and results do not depend on test modality per se but rather on the particular memory system. This will be further discussed.ConclusionsRelated to the literature on ELTM decline as precursors of dementia and the fact that the risk for Alzheimer's disease increases substantially over time due to hearing loss, there is a possibility that lowered ELTM due to hearing loss and disuse may be part of the causal chain linking hearing loss and dementia. Future ELU research will focus on this possibility.
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| 19. |
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| 20. |
- Samson, Ineke, et al.
(author)
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A Cross-Sectional Investigation of the Impact of Stuttering on Swedish Females and Males in Childhood, Adolescence, and Young Adulthood
- 2022
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 65:12, s. 4608-4622
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: We aimed to cross-sectionally describe the impact of stuttering on persons who stutter (PWS): children, adolescents, and young adults. Based on previous research on PWS and psychosocial health in the general population, we hypothesized that (a) the adverse impact of stuttering in PWS would be larger among adolescents than children and young adults and that (b) females, especially adolescent females, would report being more adversely impacted by their stuttering than males.Method: We pooled samples of Swedish PWS, obtaining 162 individuals (75 females and 87 males), aged 7-30 years. We measured the impact of stuttering using age-relevant versions of the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES). The relationship between OASES score, age, and sex was described using a polynomial model with an interaction term between age and sex to allow for potential differences between females and males' age-related curves.Results: The average trends were that (a) the impact of stuttering was greater for the adolescents than for the children and young adults, and (b) females, especially adolescent females, were on average more impacted by their stuttering than males. Taking self-reported speech fluency into account did not change this pattern.Conclusions: In line with findings on psychosocial health, communication attitude, and self-esteem in the general population, the impact of stuttering seems to be particularly adverse among adolescents, especially female adolescents. Thus, clinicians need to be aware of the risk that young girls who stutter may develop a negative attitude to speech and communication, and this should also be communicated to caregivers and teachers.
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| 23. |
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| 24. |
- Sandstrom, L., et al.
(author)
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Speech Function Following Deep Brain Stimulation of the Caudal Zona Incerta: Effects of Habitual and High-Amplitude Stimulation
- 2021
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In: Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech Language Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 64:6, s. 2121-2133
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is often successful in alleviating motor symptoms of essential tremor (ET); however, DBS may also induce adverse speech effects. The caudal zona incerta (cZi) is a promising DBS target for tremor, but less is known about the consequences of cZi DBS for speech. This preliminary study examined how habitual cZi DBS and cZi stimulation at high amplitudes may affect speech function in persons with ET. Method: Fourteen participants with ET were evaluated: off stimulation, on habitual cZi DBS, and with unilateral cZi stimulation at increasing stimulation amplitudes. At each stimulation condition, the participants read three 16-word sentences. Two speech-language pathologists made audioperceptual consensus ratings of overall speech function, articulation, and voice using a visual sort and rate method. Rated functions when off stimulation, on habitual cZi DBS, and at maximal-amplitude stimulation were compared using Friedman nonparametric tests. For participants with bilateral habitual DBS (n = 5), the effects of bilateral and unilateral stimulation were described in qualitative terms. Results: Habitual cZi DBS had no significant group-level effect on any of the investigated speech parameters. Maximal-amplitude stimulation had a small but significant negative effect on articulation. Participants with reduced articulatory precision (n = 9) had more medially placed electrodes than the nonaffected group (n = 5). Bilateral and unilateral left stimulation had comparable effects on speech. Conclusions: Findings from this preliminary study of cZi DBS indicate that speech is generally not affected by stimulation at habitual levels. High-amplitude cZi stimulation may, however, induce adverse effects, particularly on articulation. Instances of decreased articulatory function were associated with stimulation of more medial electrode contacts, which could suggest cerebello-rubrospinal involvement.
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| 25. |
- Sandström, Linda, et al.
(author)
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Speech function following deep brain stimulation of the caudal zona incerta : effects of habitual and high-amplitude stimulation
- 2021
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 64:6, s. 2121-2133
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is often successful in alleviating motor symptoms of essential tremor (ET); however, DBS may also induce adverse speech effects. The caudal zona incerta (cZi) is a promising DBS target for tremor, but less is known about the consequences of cZi DBS for speech. This preliminary study examined how habitual cZi DBS and cZi stimulation at high amplitudes may affect speech function in persons with ET.Method: Fourteen participants with ET were evaluated: off stimulation, on habitual cZi DBS, and with unilateral cZi stimulation at increasing stimulation amplitudes. At each stimulation condition, the participants read three 16-word sentences. Two speech-language pathologists made audio-perceptual consensus ratings of overall speech function, articulation, and voice using a visual sort and rate method. Rated functions when off stimulation, on habitual cZi DBS, and at maximal-amplitude stimulation were compared using Friedman nonparametric tests. For participants with bilateral habitual DBS (n = 5), the effects of bilateral and unilateral stimulation were described in qualitative terms.Results: Habitual cZi DBS had no significant group-level effect on any of the investigated speech parameters. Maximal-amplitude stimulation had a small but significant negative effect on articulation. Participants with reduced articulatory precision (n = 9) had more medially placed electrodes than the nonaffected group (n = 5). Bilateral and unilateral left stimulation had comparable effects on speech.Conclusions: Findings from this preliminary study of cZi DBS indicate that speech is generally not affected by stimulation at habitual levels. High-amplitude cZi stimulation may, however, induce adverse effects, particularly on articulation. Instances of decreased articulatory function were associated with stimulation of more medial electrode contacts, which could suggest cerebello-rubrospinal involvement.
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| 26. |
- Sandström, Linda, et al.
(author)
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The effects of deep brain stimulation on speech intelligibility in persons with essential tremor
- 2020
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 63:2, s. 456-471
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: To investigate how deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the caudal zona incerta (cZi) affects speech intelligibility in persons with essential tremor (ET).Method: Thirty-five participants were evaluated: off stimulation, on chronic stimulation optimized to alleviate tremor, and during unilateral stimulation at increasing amplitude levels. At each stimulation condition, the participants read 10 unique nonsense sentences from the Swedish Test of Intelligibility. Two listeners, blinded to stimulation condition, transcribed all recorded sentences orthographically in a randomised procedure. A mean speech intelligibility score for each patient and stimulation condition was computed, and comparisons were made between scores off- and on stimulation.Results: Chronic cZi-DBS had no significant effect on speech intelligibility, and there was no difference in outcome between bilateral and unilateral treatments. During unilateral stimulation at increasing amplitudes, nine participants demonstrated deteriorating speech intelligibility. These nine participants were on average older and had more superior contacts activated during the evaluation compared with the participants without deterioration.Conclusions: Chronic cZi-DBS, optimized for tremor suppression, does not generally affect speech intelligibility in persons with ET. Furthermore, speech intelligibility may be preserved in many individuals, even when stimulated at high amplitudes. Adverse effects of high-amplitude unilateral stimulation observed in this study were associated with stimulation originating from a more superior location, as well as with the participants’ age. These results, highlighting age and stimulation location as contributing to speech intelligibility outcomes were, however, based on a limited number of individuals experiencing adverse effects with high-amplitude stimulation and should, therefore, be interpreted with caution.
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| 27. |
- Shiell, Martha M., et al.
(author)
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Multilevel Modeling of Gaze From Listeners With Hearing Loss Following a Realistic Conversation
- 2023
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : AMER SPEECH-LANGUAGE-HEARING ASSOC. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 66:11, s. 4575-4589
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: There is a need for tools to study real-world communication abilities in people with hearing loss. We outline a potential method for this that analyzes gaze and use it to answer the question of when and how much listeners with hearing loss look toward a new talker in a conversation.Method: Twenty-two older adults with hearing loss followed a prerecorded two person audiovisual conversation in the presence of babble noise. We compared their eye-gaze direction to the conversation in two multilevel logistic regression (MLR) analyses. First, we split the conversation into events classified by the number of active talkers within a turn or a transition, and we tested if these predicted the listener's gaze. Second, we mapped the odds that a listener gazed toward a new talker over time during a conversation transition.Results: We found no evidence that our conversation events predicted changes in the listener's gaze, but the listener's gaze toward the new talker during a silence-transition was predicted by time: The odds of looking at the new talker increased in an s-shaped curve from at least 0.4 s before to 1 s after the onset of the new talker's speech. A comparison of models with different random effects indicated that more variance was explained by differences between individual conversation events than by differences between individual listeners.Conclusions: MLR modeling of eye-gaze during talker transitions is a promising approach to study a listener's perception of realistic conversation. Our experience provides insight to guide future research with this method.
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| 28. |
- Stenbäck, Victoria, 1985-, et al.
(author)
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Informational masking and listening effort in speech recognition innoise : the role of working memory capacity and inhibitory control in older adults with and without hearing impairmen
- 2022
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - : AMER SPEECH-LANGUAGE-HEARING ASSOC. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 65:11, s. 4417-4428
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: The study aimed to assess the relationship between 1) speech-recognition-in-noise, mask type, working memory capacity (WMC), inhibitory control, and 2) self-rated listening effort, speech material, and mask type, in older adults with and without hearing-impairment. It was of special interest to assess the relationship between WMC, inhibitory control, and speech-recognition-in-noise when informational maskers masked target speech.Method: A mixed design was used. A group (N= 24) of older (mean age = 69.7 years) HI individuals, and a group of age-normal hearing adults (mean age = 59.3 years, SD = 6.5) participated in the study. The participants were presented with auditory tests in a sound attenuated room and the cognitive tests in a quiet office. The participants were asked to rate listening effort after being presented with energetic and informational background maskers in two different speech materials used in this study (i.e., Hearing in Noise Test and the Hagerman Test). Linear-Mixed Effects models were set up to assess the effect of the two different speech materials, energetic and informational maskers, hearing ability, WMC, inhibitory control, and self-rated listening effort.Results: Results showed that WMC and inhibitory control was of importance for speech-recognition-in-noise, even when controlling for PTA4 (pure tone average 4) hearing thresholds and age, when the maskers were informational. Concerning listening effort, on the other hand, the results suggest that hearing ability, but not cognitive abilities, is important for self-rated listening effort in speech-recognition-in-noise.Conclusion: Speech-in-noise recognition is more dependent on WMC for older adults in informational maskers than in energetic maskers. Hearing ability is a stronger predictor than cognition for self-rated listening effort.
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| 29. |
- Stenbäck, Victoria, 1985-, et al.
(author)
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The contribution of age, working memory capacity and inhibitory control on speech-recognition-in-noise in young, and older adult listeners
- 2021
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In: Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. - Linköping : AMER SPEECH-LANGUAGE-HEARING ASSOC. - 1092-4388 .- 1558-9102. ; 64:11, s. 4513-4523
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Purpose: The study aimed to investigate the relationship between speech recognition in noise, age, hearing ability, self-rated listening effort, inhibitory control (measured with the Swedish Hayling task) and working memory capacity (WMC) (measured with the Reading span test). Two different speech materials were used; the Hagerman test with low semantic context, and HINT sentences with high semantic context, masked with either energetic or informational maskers. Method: A mixed design was used. Twenty-four young normally-hearing (mean age 25.6 years), and 24 older, for their age, normally-hearing individuals (mean age 60.6 years) participated in the study. Speech-recognition-in-noise in both speech materials and self-rated effort in all four background maskers were correlated with inhibitory control, and WMC. A linear mixed effects model was set up to assess differences between the two different speech materials, the 4 different maskers used in the study, and if age and hearing ability affected performance in the speech materials or the various background noises.Results: Results showed that high WMC was related to lower scores of self-rated listening effort for informational maskers, as well as better performance in speech recognition in noise when informational maskers were used. The linear mixed effects model revealed differences in performance between the low context and the high context speech materials, and the various maskers used. Lastly, inhibitory control had some impact on performance in the low context speech material when masked with an informational masker.
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