Identifying the perceptual factors that contribute to older listeners'''' dynamic pitch benefit for speech recognition in noise.

识别有助于老年听众动态音高的感知因素，有利于噪声中的语音识别。

基本信息

批准号：
10307057
负责人：
Jing Shen
金额：
$ 15.85万
依托单位：
TEMPLE UNIV OF THE COMMONWEALTH
依托单位国家：
美国
项目类别：
财政年份：
2019
资助国家：
美国
起止时间：
2019-05-01 至 2023-04-30
项目状态：
已结题

项目摘要

Abstract The majority of older adults with hearing loss, which is as large as one tenth of the U.S. population, have significant difficulty understanding speech in noisy environments. The potential consequences that can stem from this speech-in-noise problem include increased social isolation, cognitive decline, and psychological disturbance. While current amplification technology has not solved the speech-in-noise problem, new interventions have the potential to improve speech recognition in noise by engaging and enhancing perceptual cues, such as dynamic pitch. Dynamic pitch, as defined by the variation of fundamental frequency, aids speech recognition in noise for older adults with hearing loss. The variability, however, is substantial across individuals. To achieve the ultimate goal of enhancing dynamic pitch and improve speech recognition in noise, it is critical to understand the variability in older individuals’ benefit from dynamic pitch cues. This proposal aims to identify the perceptual factors contributing to this variability in dynamic pitch benefit among older individuals with hearing loss. The first specific aim is to establish the contribution of spectral perception to the individual variability in dynamic pitch benefit among older individuals with hearing loss. Older individuals’ ability to perceive static and dynamic spectral cues will be measured. It is hypothesized that poor performance in one or both of these two tasks will significantly contribute to an older individual’ inability to benefit from dynamic pitch cues in noise. The second specific aim is to determine the role of dynamic pitch glimpsing ability in dynamic pitch benefit for speech recognition in noise among older individuals with hearing loss. Older individuals’ dynamic pitch glimpsing ability will be characterized using a novel metric that simulates pitch perception in continuous speech. The dynamic pitch glimpsing ability is anticipated to be a significant factor that influences individuals’ dynamic pitch benefit in fluctuating noise. Drawn upon auditory scene perception theory, the third specific aim is to identify the relationship between older individuals’ ability to use pitch cues for stream segregation and dynamic pitch benefit in speech maskers. It is hypothesized that individuals with poor stream segregation ability are less capable of utilizing dynamic pitch cues to separate target speech from masker and in turn, benefit less from dynamic pitch in speech recognition. Older individuals’ ability to use pitch cues for stream segregation will be measured with a multi-tone pattern segregation task. This measure will be used to predict individuals’ dynamic pitch benefit in speech maskers. Research outcomes will provide a better understanding of the perceptual factors that contribute to the highly variable benefit from dynamic pitch in older individuals with hearing loss. This information will serve as the foundation for the development of different pitch enhancement strategies that target specific sources of difficulty within individuals.

抽象的大多数患有听力损失的老年人（占美国人口的十分之一）患有听力损失。在嘈杂的环境中理解语音存在严重困难，这可能会导致潜在的后果。这种噪音中的言语问题带来的后果包括社会孤立加剧、认知能力下降和心理问题虽然当前的放大技术还没有解决噪声中的语音问题，但新的技术已经出现。干预措施有可能通过吸引和增强感知来改善噪声中的语音识别提示，例如动态音调，由基频的变化定义，有助于语音。然而，患有听力损失的老年人对噪音的识别能力在个体之间存在很大差异。要实现增强动态音调并提高噪声中语音识别的最终目标，至关重要了解老年人从动态音调线索中获益的差异。该提案旨在确定。导致老年人动态俯仰收益变化的感知因素第一个具体目标是确定光谱感知对个人的贡献。患有听力损失的老年人的动态音调益处的变化。感知静态和动态光谱线索将被捕获，其中一个或多个表现不佳。这两项任务都将极大地导致老年人无法从动态音调中受益第二个具体目标是确定动态音调瞥视能力在动态中的作用。对于患有听力损失的老年人来说，噪音中的语音识别有利于语音识别。动态俯仰掠视能力将使用一种新颖的指标来表征，该指标可以模拟俯仰感知预计动态音调预览能力是影响连续语音的一个重要因素。第三个是根据听觉场景感知理论得出的个体在波动噪声中的动态音调益处。具体目标是确定老年人使用音调线索进行直播的能力之间的关系语音掩蔽器中的隔离和动态音调受益人们再次认识到，语流较差的人。分离能力较差，无法利用动态音调线索将目标语音与掩蔽语音分开，反过来，老年人从语音识别中的动态音调中受益较少。流隔离将通过多音模式隔离任务来测量。该测量将用于。预测个人在言语掩蔽中的动态音调益处将提供更好的结果。了解导致老年人从动态音高中获得高度可变益处的感知因素这些信息将作为开发不同音调的基础。针对个人内部特定困难来源的增强策略。