FORUM: Remote testing for psychological and physiological acoustics

Effect of frequency compression on fricative perception between normal-hearing English and Mandarin listeners

High-frequency speech information is susceptible to inaccurate perception in even mild to moderate forms of hearing loss. Some hearing aids employ frequency-lowering methods such as nonlinear frequency compression (NFC) to help hearing-impaired individuals access high-frequency speech information in more accessible lower-frequency regions. As such techniques cause significant spectral distortion, tests such as the S-Sh Confusion Test help optimize NFC settings to provide high-frequency audibility with the least distortion. Such tests have been traditionally based on speech contrasts pertinent to English. Here, the effects of NFC processing on fricative perception between English and Mandarin listeners are assessed. Small but significant differences in fricative discrimination were observed between the groups. The study demonstrates possible need for language-specific clinical fitting procedures for NFC.

Comparison of Psychometric Functions Measured Using Remote Testing and Laboratory Testing

The use of remote testing to collect behavioral data has been on the rise, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. Here we present psychometric functions for a commonly used speech corpus obtained in remote testing and laboratory testing conditions on young normal hearing listeners in the presence of different types of maskers. Headphone use for the remote testing group was checked by supplementing procedures from prior literature using a Huggins pitch task. Results revealed no significant differences in the measured thresholds using the remote testing and laboratory testing conditions for all the three masker types. Also, the thresholds measured obtained in these two conditions were strongly correlated for a different group of young normal hearing listeners. Based on the results, excellent outcomes on auditory threshold measurements where the stimuli are presented both at levels lower than and above an individual's speech-recognition threshold can be obtained by remotely testing the listeners.

Characterizing the relationship between modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution in cochlear implant users

Cochlear implants are medical devices that have restored hearing to approximately one million people around the world. Outcomes are impressive and most recipients attain excellent speech comprehension in quiet without relying on lip-reading cues, but pitch resolution is poor compared to normal hearing. Amplitude modulation of electrical stimulation is a primary cue for pitch perception in cochlear implant users. The experiments described in this article focus on the relationship between sensitivity to amplitude modulations and pitch resolution based on changes in the frequency of amplitude modulations. In the first experiment, modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution were measured in adults with no known hearing loss and in cochlear implant users with sounds presented to and processed by their clinical devices. Stimuli were amplitude-modulated sinusoids and amplitude-modulated narrow-band noises. Modulation detection and modulation frequency discrimination were measured for modulation frequencies centered on 110, 220, and 440 Hz. Pitch resolution based on changes in modulation frequency was measured for modulation depths of 25 %, 50 %, 100 %, and for a half-waved rectified modulator. Results revealed a strong linear relationship between modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution for cochlear implant users and peers with no known hearing loss. In the second experiment, cochlear implant users took part in analogous procedures of modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution but bypassing clinical sound processing using single-electrode stimulation. Results indicated that modulation sensitivity and pitch resolution was better conveyed by single-electrode stimulation than by clinical processors. Results at 440 Hz were worse, but also not well conveyed by clinical sound processing, so it remains unclear whether the 300 Hz perceptual limit described in the literature is a technological or biological limitation. These results highlight modulation depth and sensitivity as critical factors for pitch resolution in cochlear implant users and characterize the relationship that should inform the design of modulation enhancement algorithms for cochlear implants.

Web-based psychoacoustics: Hearing screening, infrastructure, and validation

Anonymous web-based experiments are increasingly used in many domains of behavioral research. However, online studies of auditory perception, especially of psychoacoustic phenomena pertaining to low-level sensory processing, are challenging because of limited available control of the acoustics, and the inability to perform audiometry to confirm normal-hearing status of participants. Here, we outline our approach to mitigate these challenges and validate our procedures by comparing web-based measurements to lab-based data on a range of classic psychoacoustic tasks. Individual tasks were created using jsPsych, an open-source JavaScript front-end library. Dynamic sequences of psychoacoustic tasks were implemented using Django, an open-source library for web applications, and combined with consent pages, questionnaires, and debriefing pages. Subjects were recruited via Prolific, a subject recruitment platform for web-based studies. Guided by a meta-analysis of lab-based data, we developed and validated a screening procedure to select participants for (putative) normal-hearing status based on their responses in a suprathreshold task and a survey. Headphone use was standardized by supplementing procedures from prior literature with a binaural hearing task. Individuals meeting all criteria were re-invited to complete a range of classic psychoacoustic tasks. For the re-invited participants, absolute thresholds were in excellent agreement with lab-based data for fundamental frequency discrimination, gap detection, and sensitivity to interaural time delay and level difference. Furthermore, word identification scores, consonant confusion patterns, and co-modulation masking release effect also matched lab-based studies. Our results suggest that web-based psychoacoustics is a viable complement to lab-based research. Source code for our infrastructure is provided.

Contribution of speech rhythm to understanding speech in noisy conditions: Further test of a selective entrainment hypothesis

Previous work by McAuley et al. Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics, 82, 3222-3233, (2020), Attention, Perception & Psychophysics, 83, 2229-2240, (2021) showed that disruption of the natural rhythm of target (attended) speech worsens speech recognition in the presence of competing background speech or noise (a target-rhythm effect), while disruption of background speech rhythm improves target recognition (a background-rhythm effect). While these results were interpreted as support for the role of rhythmic regularities in facilitating target-speech recognition amidst competing backgrounds (in line with a selective entrainment hypothesis), questions remain about the factors that contribute to the target-rhythm effect. Experiment 1 ruled out the possibility that the target-rhythm effect relies on a decrease in intelligibility of the rhythm-altered keywords. Sentences from the Coordinate Response Measure (CRM) paradigm were presented with a background of speech-shaped noise, and the rhythm of the initial portion of these target sentences (the target rhythmic context) was altered while critically leaving the target Color and Number keywords intact. Results showed a target-rhythm effect, evidenced by poorer keyword recognition when the target rhythmic context was altered, despite the absence of rhythmic manipulation of the keywords. Experiment 2 examined the influence of the relative onset asynchrony between target and background keywords. Results showed a significant target-rhythm effect that was independent of the effect of target-background keyword onset asynchrony. Experiment 3 provided additional support for the selective entrainment hypothesis by replicating the target-rhythm effect with a set of speech materials that were less rhythmically constrained than the CRM sentences.

Testing the Informativeness of Diverse Measures of Auditory Processing for Clinical Audiological Practice in Middle-Aged Adults in Mexico

PURPOSE

Standard clinical audiologic assessment is limited in its ability to capture variance in self-reported hearing difficulty. Additionally, the costs associated with clinical testing in audiology create financial barriers for hearing health care in developing countries like Mexico. This study used an open-source Spanish-language tool called PART (Portable Automated Rapid Testing) to test the hypothesis that a battery of assessments of auditory processing can complement standard clinical audiological assessment to better capture the variance of self-reported hearing difficulty.

METHOD

Forty-three adults between 40 and 69 years of age were tested in Mexico City using a traditional clinical pure-tone audiogram, cognitive screening, and a battery of PART-based auditory processing assessments including a speech-on-speech competition spatial release from masking task. Results were compared to self-reported hearing difficulty, assessed with a Spanish-language adaptation of the Hearing Handicap Inventory for the Elderly-Screening Version (HHIE-S).

RESULTS

Several measures from the PART battery exhibited stronger correlations with self-reported hearing difficulties than the pure-tone audiogram. The spatial release from masking task best captured variance in HHIE-S scores and remained significant after controlling for the effects of age, audibility, and cognitive score.

CONCLUSIONS

The spatial release from masking task can complement traditional clinical measures to better account for patient's self-reported hearing difficulty. Open-source access to this test in PART supports its implementation for Spanish speakers in clinical settings around the world at low cost.

SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.24470140.

Web-based psychoacoustics of binaural hearing: Two validation experiments

Web-based testing is an appealing option for expanding psychoacoustics research outside laboratory environments due to its simple logistics. For example, research participants partake in listening tasks using their own computer and audio hardware and can participate in a comfortable environment of their choice at their own pace. However, it is unknown how deviations from conventional in-lab testing affect data quality, particularly in binaural hearing tasks that traditionally require highly precise audio presentation. Here, we used an online platform to replicate two published in-lab experiments: lateralization to interaural time and level differences (ITD and ILD, experiment I) and dichotic and contralateral unmasking of speech (experiment II) in normal-hearing (NH) young adults. Lateralization data collected online were strikingly similar to in-lab results. Likewise, the amount of unmasking measured online and in-lab differed by less than 1 dB, although online participants demonstrated higher speech reception thresholds overall than those tested in-lab by up to ∼7 dB. Results from online participants who completed a hearing screening versus those who self-reported NH did not differ significantly. We conclude that web-based psychoacoustics testing is a viable option for assessing binaural hearing abilities among young NH adults and discuss important considerations for online study design.

How moderation affects remote psychophysical tasks with children

The increasing use of remote platforms for auditory research necessitates more in-depth evaluation of assessment protocols, especially when working with children. This work investigates the influence of the presence of a moderator on remote audiovisual speech perception studies, by assessing how moderation impacts children's understanding and performance of the psychophysical tasks as well as their attention on these tasks. In sum, moderated and unmoderated methods can reliably assess audiovisual speech perception benefits. However, regardless of similar error patterns between both studies, unmoderated online studies with children are prone to more general attention lapses as suggested by higher overall error rates.

Effects of Soundscape Complexity on Urban Noise Annoyance Ratings: A Large-Scale Online Listening Experiment

Noise annoyance has been often reported as one of the main adverse effects of noise exposure on human health, and there is consensus that it relates to several factors going beyond the mere energy content of the signal. Research has historically focused on a limited set of sound sources (e.g., transport and industrial noise); only more recently is attention being given to more holistic aspects of urban acoustic environments and the role they play in the noise annoyance perceptual construct. This is the main approach promoted in soundscape studies, looking at both wanted and unwanted sounds. In this study, three specific aspects were investigated, namely: (1) the effect of different sound sources combinations, (2) the number of sound sources present in the soundscape, and (3) the presence of individual sound source, on noise annoyance perception. For this purpose, a large-scale online experiment was carried out with 1.2k+ participants, using 2.8k+ audio recordings of complex urban acoustic environments to investigate how they would influence the perceived noise annoyance. Results showed that: (1) the combinations of different sound sources were not important, compared, instead, to the number of sound sources identified in the soundscape recording (regardless of sound sources type); (2) the annoyance ratings expressed a minimum when any two clearly distinguishable sound sources were present in a given urban soundscape; and (3) the presence (either in isolation or combination) of traffic-related sound sources increases noise annoyance, while the presence (either in isolation or combination) of nature-related sound sources decreases noise annoyance.

A perception-based study of the indoor and outdoor acoustic environments in India during the COVID-19 pandemic

This work presents the results of a perception-based study of changes in the local soundscape at residences across India during the last 2 years of the COVID-19 pandemic and their effects on well-being, productivity during work from home (WFH), online education, anxiety, and noise sensitivity. Using emails and social media platforms, an online cross-sectional survey was conducted involving 942 participants. The responses showed that a greater percentage of participants felt that the indoor environment was noisier during the 2020 lockdown, which was attributed to increased home-entertainment usage, video-calling, and family interaction. The outdoor soundscape was much quieter during the 2020 lockdown due to drastically reduced traffic and commercial activities; however, during the 2021 lockdown, it was perceived to be comparable with pre-COVID times. While changes in indoor soundscape were shown to affect peace, happiness, and concentration while increasing annoyance, the reduction in outdoor noise positively impacted these aspects. The responses indicate that indoor soundscape changes adversely affected productivity and online education. Consequently, only 15% of participants now prefer the WFH model, while 62% have reservations about online education. In some cases, the responses demonstrate a significant influence of demography and suggest the improvement of the acoustic design of residences to support work.

Remote auditory assessment using Portable Automated Rapid Testing (PART) and participant-owned devices

Remote testing of auditory function can be transformative to both basic research and hearing healthcare; however, historically, many obstacles have limited remote collection of reliable and valid auditory psychometric data. Here, we report performance on a battery of auditory processing tests using a remotely administered system, Portable Automatic Rapid Testing. We compare a previously reported dataset collected in a laboratory setting with the same measures using uncalibrated, participant-owned devices in remote settings (experiment 1, n = 40) remote with and without calibrated hardware (experiment 2, n = 36) and laboratory with and without calibrated hardware (experiment 3, n = 58). Results were well-matched across datasets and had similar reliability, but overall performance was slightly worse than published norms. Analyses of potential nuisance factors such as environmental noise, distraction, or lack of calibration failed to provide reliable evidence that these factors contributed to the observed variance in performance. These data indicate feasibility of remote testing of suprathreshold auditory processing using participants' own devices. Although the current investigation was limited to young participants without hearing difficulties, its outcomes demonstrate the potential for large-scale, remote hearing testing of more hearing-diverse populations both to advance basic science and to establish the clinical viability of auditory remote testing.

Assessment methods for determining small changes in hearing performance over time

Although the behavioral pure-tone threshold audiogram is considered the gold standard for quantifying hearing loss, assessment of speech understanding, especially in noise, is more relevant to quality of life but is only partly related to the audiogram. Metrics of speech understanding in noise are therefore an attractive target for assessing hearing over time. However, speech-in-noise assessments have more potential sources of variability than pure-tone threshold measures, making it a challenge to obtain results reliable enough to detect small changes in performance. This review examines the benefits and limitations of speech-understanding metrics and their application to longitudinal hearing assessment, and identifies potential sources of variability, including learning effects, differences in item difficulty, and between- and within-individual variations in effort and motivation. We conclude by recommending the integration of non-speech auditory tests, which provide information about aspects of auditory health that have reduced variability and fewer central influences than speech tests, in parallel with the traditional audiogram and speech-based assessments.