Abstract
Purpose
The visual Text Reception Threshold (TRT) test (Zekveld et al., 2007) has been designed to assess modality-general factors relevant for speech perception in noise. In the last decade, the test has been adopted in audiology labs worldwide. The 1st aim of this study was to examine which factors best predict interindividual differences in the TRT. Second, we aimed to assess the relationships between the TRT and the speech reception thresholds (SRTs) estimated in various conditions.
Method
First, we reviewed studies reporting relationships between the TRT and the auditory and/or cognitive factors and formulated specific hypotheses regarding the TRT predictors. These hypotheses were tested using a prediction model applied to a rich data set of 180 hearing aid users. In separate association models, we tested the relationships between the TRT and the various SRTs and subjective hearing difficulties, while taking into account potential confounding variables.
Results
The results of the prediction model indicate that the TRT is predicted by the ability to fill in missing words in incomplete sentences, by lexical access speed, and by working memory capacity. Furthermore, in line with previous studies, a moderate association between higher age, poorer pure-tone hearing acuity, and poorer TRTs was observed. Better TRTs were associated with better SRTs for the correct perception of 50% of Hagerman matrix sentences in a 4-talker babble, as well as with better subjective ratings of speech perception. Age and pure-tone hearing thresholds significantly confounded these associations. The associations of the TRT with SRTs estimated in other conditions and with subjective qualities of hearing were not statistically significant when adjusting for age and pure-tone average.
Conclusions
We conclude that the abilities tapped into by the TRT test include processes relevant for speeded lexical decision making when completing partly masked sentences and that these processes require working memory capacity. Furthermore, the TRT is associated with the SRT of hearing aid users as estimated in a challenging condition that includes informational masking and with experienced difficulties with speech perception in daily-life conditions. The current results underline the value of using the TRT test in studies involving speech perception and aid in the interpretation of findings acquired using the test.
References
-
Akeroyd, M. A. (2008). Are individual differences in speech reception threshold related to individual differences in cognitive ability? A survey of twenty experimental studies with normal and hearing-impaired adults.International Journal of Audiology, 47(Suppl. 2), S53–S71. https://doi.org/10.1080/14992020802301142 -
Andersson, U., Lyxell, B., Rönnberg, J., & Spens, K. E. (2001). Cognitive correlates of visual speech understanding in hearing-impaired individuals.Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 6(2), 103–116. https://doi.org/10.1093/deafed/6.2.103 -
Arlinger, S., Lunner, T., Lyxell, B., & Pichora-Fuller, K. (2009). The emergence of cognitive hearing science.Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 50, 371–384. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9450.2009.00753.x -
Baddeley, A., Logie, R., Nimmosmith, I., & Brereton, N. (1985). Components of fluent reading.Journal of Memory and Language, 24, 119–131. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-596x(85)90019-1 -
Besser, J., Festen, J. M., Goverts, S. T., Kramer, S. E., & Pichora-Fuller, M. K. (2015). Speech-in-speech listening on the LiSN-S Test by older adults with good audiograms depends on cognition and hearing acuity at high frequencies.Ear and Hearing, 36(1), 24–41. https://doi.org/10.1097/aud.0000000000000096 -
Besser, J., Koelewijn, T., Zekveld, A. A., Kramer, S. E., & Festen, J. M. (2013). How linguistic closure and verbal working memory relate to speech recognition in noise—A review.Trends in Amplification, 17, 75–93. https://doi.org/10.1177/1084713813495459 -
Besser, J., Zekveld, A. A., Kramer, S. E., Rönnberg, J., & Festen, J. M. (2012). New measures of masked text recognition in relation to speech-in-noise perception and their associations with age and cognitive abilities.Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 55, 194–209. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2011/11-0008) -
Brand, T. (2000). Analysis and optimization of psychophysical procedures in audiology. Oldenburg, Germany: BIS Verlag. -
Burnham, K. P., & Anderson, D. R. (2004). Multimodel inference understanding AIC and BIC in model selection.Sociological Methods & Research, 33(2), 261–304. -
Classon, E., Rudner, M., & Rönnberg, J. (2013). Working memory compensates for hearing related phonological processing deficit.Journal of Communication Disorders, 46, 17–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcomdis.2012.10.001 -
Daneman, M., & Carpenter, P. A. (1980). Individual differences in integrating information between and within sentences.Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory and Cognition, 9, 561–584. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-7393.9.4.561 -
Davis, M. H., & Johnsrude, I. S. (2003). Hierarchical processing in spoken language comprehension.Journal of Neuroscience, 23(8), 3423–3431. -
Gatehouse, S., & Noble, W. (2004). The Speech, Spatial and Qualities of Hearing Scale (SSQ).International Journal of Audiology, 43, 85–99. https://doi.org/10.1080/14992020400050014 -
George, E. L. J., Zekveld, A. A., Kramer, S. E., Goverts, S. T., Festen, J. M., & Houtgast, T. (2007). Auditory and nonauditory factors affecting speech reception in noise by older listeners.The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 121, 2362–2375. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.2642072 -
Goverts, S. T., Huysmans, E., Kramer, S. E., de Groot, A. M., & Houtgast, T. (2011). On the use of the distortion-sensitivity approach in examining the role of linguistic abilities in speech understanding in noise.Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 54, 1702–1708. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2011/09-0268) -
Grayson, D. A. (1987). Confounding confounding.American Journal of Epidemiology, 126, 546–553. https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a114687 -
Hagerman, B. (1982). Sentences for testing speech intelligibility in noise.Scandinavian Audiology, 11(2), 79–87. https://doi.org/10.3109/01050398209076203 -
Hagerman, B., & Kinnefors, C. (1995). Efficient adaptive methods for measuring speech reception threshold in quiet and in noise.Scandinavian Audiology, 24(1), 71–77. https://doi.org/10.3109/14992029509042213 -
Hällgren, M., Larsby, B., & Arlinger, S. (2006). A Swedish version of the Hearing in Noise Test (HINT) for measurement of speech recognition.International Journal of Audiology, 45, 227–237. https://doi.org/10.1080/14992020500429583 -
Hannon, B., & Daneman, M. (2001). A new tool for measuring and understanding individual differences in the component processes of reading comprehension.Journal of Educational Psychology, 93, 103–128. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-0663.93.1.103 -
Haumann, S., Hohmann, V., Meis, M., Herzke, T., Lenarz, T., & Büchner, A. (2012). Indication criteria for cochlear implants and hearing aids: impact of audiological and non-audiological findings.Audiology Research, 2(e12), 55–64. https://doi.org/10.4081/audiores.2012.e12 -
Heinrich, A., Henshaw, H., & Ferguson, M. A. (2016). Only behavioral but not self-report measures of speech perception correlate with cognitive abilities.Frontiers in Psychology, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00576 -
Humes, L. E. (2007). The contributions of audibility and cognitive factors to the benefit provided by amplified speech to older adults.Journal of the American Academy of Audiology, 18, 590–603. https://doi.org/10.3766/jaaa.18.7.6 -
Humes, L. E., Kidd, G. R., & Lentz, J. J. (2013). Auditory and cognitive factors underlying individual differences in aided speech-understanding among older adults.Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience, 7. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnsys.2013.00055 - International Organization for Standardization. (2000). Acoustics statistical distribution of hearing thresholds as a function of age. ISO 7029. Geneva, Switzerland: ISO.
-
Koelewijn, T., Zekveld, A. A., Festen, J. M., & Kramer, S. E. (2014). The influence of informational masking on speech perception and pupil response in adults with hearing impairment.The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 153, 1596–1606. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.4863198 -
Koelewijn, T., Zekveld, A. A., Festen, J. M., Rönnberg, J., & Kramer, S. E. (2012). Processing load induced by informational masking is related to linguistic abilities.International Journal of Otolaryngology, 2012, Article ID 865731. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/865731 -
Kramer, S. E., Zekveld, A. A., & Houtgast, T. (2009). Measuring cognitive factors in speech comprehension: The value of using the Text Reception Threshold test as a visual equivalent of the SRT test.The Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 50, 507–515. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9450.2009.00747.x -
Krull, V., Humes, L. E., & Kidd, G. R. (2012). Reconstructing wholes from parts: Effects of modality, age, and hearing loss on word recognition.Ear and Hearing, 34(2), e14–e23. https://doi.org/10.1097/aud.0b013e31826d0c27 -
Le Goff, N. (2015). Amplifying soft sounds—A personal matter [White paper]. Retrieved from Oticon A/S http://www.oticon.global/professionals/evidence -
Logan, G. D. (1994). On the ability to inhibit thought and action: A users' guide to the stop signal paradigm.In:D. Dagenbach & T. H. Carr (Eds.), Inhibitory processes in attention, memory, and language (pp. 189–239). San Diego, CA: Academic Press. -
Lunner, T., & Sundewall-Thorén, E. (2007). Interactions between cognition, compression, and listening conditions: Effects on speech-in-noise performance in a two-channel hearing aid.Journal of the American Academy of Audiology, 18(7), 604–617. https://doi.org/10.3766/jaaa.18.7.7 -
Lyxell, B., & Rönnberg, J. (1987). Guessing and speechreading.British Journal of Audiology, 21, 13–20. https://doi.org/10.3109/03005368709077769 -
Lyxell, B., & Rönnberg, J. (1989). Information-processing skills and speechreading.British Journal of Audiology, 23, 339–347. -
Lyxell, B., Rönnberg, J., & Samuelsson, S. (1994). Internal speech functioning and speechreading in deafened and normal hearing adults.Scandinavian Journal of Audiology, 23, 179–185. https://doi.org/10.3109/01050399409047505 -
Mishra, S., Lunner, T., Stenfelt, S., Rönnberg, J., & Rudner, M. (2013a). Seeing the talker's face supports executive processing of speech in steady state noise.Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, 7, 96. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2013.00096 -
Mishra, S., Lunner, T., Stenfelt, S., Rönnberg, J., & Rudner, M. (2013b). Visual information can hinder working memory processing of speech.Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 56, 1120–1132. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2012/12-0033) -
Mishra, S., Stenfelt, S., Lunner, T., Rönnberg, J., & Rudner, M. (2014). Cognitive spare capacity in adults with hearing loss.Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, 6, 96. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2014.00096 -
Miyake, A., Emerson, M. J., & Friedman, N. P. (2000). Assessment of executive functions in clinical settings: Problems and recommendations.Seminars in Speech and Language, 21, 169–183. https://doi.org/10.1055/s-2000-7563 -
Moons, K. G., Altman, D. G., Reitsma, J. B., Ioannidis, J. P., Macaskill, P., Steyerberg, E. W., … Collins, G. S. (2015). Transparent Reporting of a multivariable prediction model for Individual Prognosis Or Diagnosis (TRIPOD): Explanation and elaboration the TRIPOD statement: Explanation and elaboration.Annals of Internal Medicine, 162(1), W1–W73. https://doi.org/10.7326/M14-0698 -
Moradi, S., Lidestam, B., & Rönnberg, J. (2013). Gated audiovisual speech identification in silence vs. noise: Effects on time and accuracy.Frontiers in Psychology, 4, 359. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2013.00359 -
Morris, N., & Jones, D. M. (1990). Memory updating in working memory: The role of the central executive.British Journal of Psychology, 81, 111–121. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2044-8295.1990.tb02349.x -
Nation, K., & Snowling, M. J. (2004). Beyond phonological skills: Broader language skills contribute to the development of reading.Journal of Research in Reading, 27, 342–356. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9817.2004.00238.x -
Ng, E. H., Classon, E., Larsby, B., Arlinger, S., Lunner, T., Rudner, M., & Rönnberg, J. (2014). Dynamic relation between working memory capacity and speech recognition in noise during the first 6 months of hearing aid use.Trends in Hearing, 18, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1177/2331216514558688 -
Ng, E. H. N., Rudner, M., Lunner, T., Pedersen, M. S., & Rönnberg, J. (2013). Effects of noise and working memory capacity on memory processing of speech for hearing-aid users.International Journal of Audiology, 52(7), 433–441. https://doi.org/10.3109/14992027.2013.776181 -
Nilsson, M., Soli, S. D., & Sullivan, J. A. (1994). Development of the Hearing In Noise Test for the measurement of speech reception thresholds in quiet and in noise.The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 95, 1085–1099. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.408469 -
Noble, W., & Gatehouse, S. (2006). Effects of bilateral versus unilateral hearing aid fitting on abilities measured by the Speech, Spatial, and Qualities of Hearing Scale (SSQ).International Journal of Audiology, 45, 172–181. https://doi.org/10.1080/14992020500376933 -
Pichora-Fuller, M. K. (2007). Audition and cognition: What audiologists need to know about listening.InC. Palmer & R. Seewald (Eds.), Hearing care for adults (pp. 71–85). Stäfa, Switzerland: Phonak. -
Plomp, R. (2001). The intelligent ear: On the nature of sound perception. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. - R Core Team. (2017). R: A language and environment for statistical computing. Vienna, Austria: R Foundation for Statistical Computing. http://www.R-project.org/
-
Rönnberg, J. (1990). Cognitive and communicative function: The effects of chronological age and “handicap age.”.European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 2(3), 253–273. https://doi.org/10.1080/09541449008406207 -
Rönnberg, J. (2003). Cognition in the hearing impaired and deaf as a bridge between signal and dialogue: A framework and a model.International Journal of Audiology, 42, S68–S76. https://doi.org/10.3109/14992020309074626 -
Rönnberg, J., Arlinger, S., Lyxell, B., & Kinnefors, C. (1989). Visual evoked potentials: Relation to adult speechreading and cognitive function.Journal of Speech and Hearing Research, 32, 725–735. -
Rönnberg, J., Danielsson, H., Rudner, M., Arlinger, S., Sternang, O., Wahlin, A., & Nilsson, L. G. (2011). Hearing loss is negatively related to episodic and semantic long-term memory but not to short-term memory.Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 54(2), 705–726. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2010/09-0088) -
Rönnberg, J., Lunner, T., Hoi Ning Ng, E., Lidestam, B., Zekveld, A. A., Sörqvist, P., … Stenfelt, S. (2016). Hearing impairment, cognition and speech understanding: Exploratory factor analyses of a comprehensive test battery for a group of hearing aid users, the n200 study.International Journal of Audiology, 55, 623–642. https://doi.org/10.1080/14992027.2016.1219775 -
Rönnberg, J., Lunner, T., Zekveld, A. A., Sörqvist, P., Danielsson, H., Lyxell, B., … Rudner, M. (2013). The Ease of Language Understanding (ELU) model: Theoretical, empirical, and clinical advances.Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience, 7, 31. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnsys.2013.00031 -
Sauerbrei, W. (1999). The use of resampling methods to simplify regression models in medical statistics.Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series C (Applied Statistics), 48(3), 313–329. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9876.00155 -
Schoof, T., & Rosen, S. (2014). The role of auditory and cognitive factors in understanding speech in noise by normal-hearing listeners.Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, 6, 307. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnagi.2014.00307 -
Schoof, T., & Rosen, S. (2015). High sentence predictability increases the fluctuating masker benefit.The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, 138(3), EL181–EL186. https://doi.org/10.1121/1.4929627 -
Steyerberg, E. W. (2008). Clinical prediction models: A practical approach to development, validation, and updating. New York, NY: Springer Science + Business Media. -
Venables, W. N., & Ripley, B. D. (2002) Modern applied statistics with S (4th ed.). New York, NY: Springer. -
Winn, M. (2016). Rapid release from listening effort resulting from sematic context, and effects of spectral degradation and cochlear implants.Trends in Hearing, 20, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1177/2331216516669723 -
Yntema, D. B. (1963). Keeping track of several things at once.Human Factors, 5, 7–17. -
Zekveld, A. A., George, E. L. J., Houtgast, T., & Kramer, S. E. (2013). Cognitive abilities relate to self-reported hearing disability.Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 56, 1364–1372. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2013/12-0268) -
Zekveld, A. A., George, E. L. J., Kramer, S. E., Goverts, S. T., Festen, J. M., & Houtgast, T. (2007). The development of the Text Reception Threshold test: A visual analogue of the speech reception threshold test.Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 50, 576–584. https://doi.org/10.1044/1092-4388(2007/040) -
Zekveld, A. A., Kramer, S. E., & Festen, J. M. (2010). Pupil response as an indication of effortful listening: The influence of sentence intelligibility.Ear and Hearing, 31, 480–490. https://doi.org/10.1097/AUD.0b013e3181d4f251 -
Zekveld, A. A., Kramer, S. E., & Festen, J. M. (2011). Cognitive load during speech perception in noise: The influence of age, hearing loss, and cognition on the pupil response.Ear and Hearing, 32, 498–510. https://doi.org/10.1097/aud.0b013e31820512bb -
Zekveld, A. A., Kramer, S. E., Kessens, J. M., Vlaming, M. S. M. G., & Houtgast, T. (2009). The influence of age, hearing, and working memory on the speech comprehension benefit derived from an automatic speech recognizer.Ear and Hearing, 30, 262–272. https://doi.org/10.1097/aud.0b013e3181987063 -
Zekveld, A. A., Rudner, M., Johnsrude, I. S., Festen, J. M., Van Beek, J. M. H., & Rönnberg, J. (2011). The influence of semantically related and unrelated text cues on the intelligibility of sentences in noise.Ear and Hearing, 32, e16–e25. https://doi.org/10.1097/aud.0b013e318228036a -
Zekveld, A. A., Rudner, M., Kramer, S. E., Lyzenga, J., & Rönnberg, J. (2014). Cognitive processing load during listening is reduced more by decreasing voice similarity than by increasing spatial separation between target and masker speech.Frontiers in Neuroscience, 8, 88. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2014.00088
Add to your Mendeley library