Overview
The purpose of this study is to better understand the sensitivity of listeners to the fast changes in frequency or amplitude of sounds that occur in speech. The investigators are studying ways to manipulate these aspects of sounds in an effort to make speech sounds more clear.
Description
The investigators will test listeners with normal hearing or with mild or moderate hearing loss. Tests will first focus on sensitivity to changes in fast changes in amplitude (loudness) or frequency (pitch) in sounds. Then the investigators will test the intelligibility of synthetic vowels and syllables in which these "chirps" are manipulated. Finally, the investigators will test intelligibility of words in noise while manipulating sounds in an effort to improve clarity.
Eligibility
Inclusion Criteria:
- Normal hearing, mild or moderate symmetric sensorineural hearing loss.
Exclusion Criteria:
- Asymmetric hearing thresholds (more than 15 decibels (dB) threshold difference between the two ears at any frequency up to 4 kHz).
- Severe hearing loss (greater than 60 dB hearing thresholds at any frequency up to 4 kHz).