Characterization of speech understanding in various types of noise

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The time course of auditory and language-specific mechanisms in compensation for sibilant assimilation

Models of spoken-word recognition differ on whether compensation for assimilation is language-specific or depends on general auditory processing. English and French participants were taught words that began or ended with the sibilants /s/ and /∫/. Both languages exhibit some assimilation in sibilant sequences (e.g., /s/ becomes like [∫] in dress shop and classe chargée), but they differ in the strength and predominance of anticipatory versus carryover assimilation. After training, participants were presented with novel words embedded in sentences, some of which contained an assimilatory context either preceding or following. A continuum of target sounds ranging from [s] to [∫] was spliced into the novel words, representing a range of possible assimilation strengths. Listeners' perceptions were examined using a visual-world eyetracking paradigm in which the listener clicked on pictures matching the novel words. We found two distinct language-general context effects: a contrastive effect when the assimilating context preceded the target, and flattening of the sibilant categorization function (increased ambiguity) when the assimilating context followed. Furthermore, we found that English but not French listeners were able to resolve the ambiguity created by the following assimilatory context, consistent with their greater experience with assimilation in this context. The combination of these mechanisms allows listeners to deal flexibly with variability in speech forms

Assessment of speech intelligibility in noise with the hearing in noise test

This overview focused on a number of factors that must be considered when measuring speech intelligibility in noise. In addressing each factor, a number of considerations and assumptions must be made. This paper attempts to identify each of the considerations and assumptions underlying the HINT. By so doing, the user is made aware of the strengths and limitations of this approach to the assessment of speech intelligibility in noise. In the following short reports, relevant details about the development and normalization of the HINT materials in each language are provided. Ongoing research with additional languages is expected to produce new HINT materials with measurement characteristics similar to those described herein. © 2008 British Society of Audiology, International Society of Audiology, and Nordic Audiological Society.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Development of the Cantonese Hearing In Noise Test (CHINT)

Objective: To develop a Cantonese version of the Hearing In Noise Test (CHINT) with the same features as the English Hearing In Noise Test (HINT) (Nilsson, Soli, & Sullivan, 1994). Design: The CHINT was developed in five separate studies: (1) evaluation of initial materials; (2) creation of sentence materials; (3) equalization of sentence difficulty; (4) creation of sentence lists; and (5) evaluation of response variability, inter-list reliability, and establishment of norms. Using the CHINT material, reception thresholds for sentences were measured under four headphone test conditions: Quiet, and in noise with noise simulated as originating from 0° (noise front), 90° (noise right), and 270° (noise left). The speech source was located at 0° in all conditions. The locations of the speech and noise sources were simulated using virtual audio processing, as with the English HINT. The noise conditions consisted of listening with noise fixed at 65 dBA with the level of speech varied in an adaptive procedure. A total of 142 subjects with normal hearing thresholds participated in the five studies. Results: Two versions of the test materials, twenty-four 20-sentence lists and twelve 20-sentence lists, were created from a single set of 240 sentences containing 10 syllables per sentence. Using the twenty-four 10-sentence lists, mean thresholds under earphones in quiet were measured at 19.4 dBA and reception thresholds for sentences of -3.9 dB for noise front, -10.6 dB for noise right, and -10.5 dB for noise left. Similar results were obtained using the 20-sentence lists (19.4, -4.0, -10.9, and -11.0 dB, respectively, for quiet, noise front, noise right, and noise left conditions). There was low response variability within each list. High inter-list reliability suggests that consistent results could be obtained using any list. Confidence intervals are reported. The CHINT norms for listening in quiet and noise conditions were comparable to those for the English HINT. Conclusions: The CHINT is the first standardized Cantonese sentence speech intelligibility test. The CHINT was developed using the same rationale as the English HINT, allowing norm reference results from the two tests to be compared directly across languages. Results showed the CHINT is a reliable test. The CHINT would benefit from further evaluation of validity. Copyright © 2005 by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Development and application of the hearing in noise test

噪聲條件下聽力測試(hearing in noise test,HINT)是在安靜和噪聲條件下測試語句識別閾(reception thresholdsfor sentences,RTS)的一項臨床聽力測試方法[1]。目前,HINT已經有14個語言版本,包括美語(HINT)、巴西葡萄牙語、保加利亞語、加拿大法語、廣東話(CHINT)、卡斯提爾西班牙語、日語(J-HINT)、拉美西班牙語、韓語(KHINT)、大陸普通話(MHINT-M)、馬來語(My-HINT)、挪威語、臺灣普通話(MHINT-T)和土耳其語。HINT采用相同的研發過程來開發各種語言版本,因為研發過程的相似性和試驗材料結果的相似性

Development of the Cantonese speech intelligibility index

A Speech Intelligibility Index (SII) for the sentences in the Cantonese version of the Hearing In Noise Test (CHINT) was derived using conventional procedures described previously in studies such as Studebaker and Sherbecoe [J. Speech Hear. Res. 34, 427-438 (1991)]. Two studies were conducted to determine the signal-to-noise ratios and high- and low-pass filtering conditions that should be used and to measure speech intelligibility in these conditions. Normal hearing subjects listened to the sentences presented in speech-spectrum shaped noise. Compared to other English speech assessment materials such as the English Hearing In Noise Test [Nilsson et al., J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 95, 1085-1099 (1994)], the frequency importance function of the CHINT suggests that low-frequency information is more important for Cantonese speech understanding. The difference in frequency importance weight in Chinese, compared to English, was attributed to the redundancy of test material, tonal nature of the Cantonese language, or a combination of these factors. © 2007 Acoustical Society of America.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Development of a speech reception test for Cantonese-speaking Children

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