Effect of dichotic listening on self-reported state anxiety

The present study examined the relationship between dichotic speech recognition and state anxiety. State anxiety, as determined by the State-Trait anxiety inventory (STAI), was measured pre- and post-dichotic testing in a group of young adults with normal hearing. Dichotic speech recognition was measured for three types of speech stimuli: 3-pair digits, monosyllabic words, and consonant-vowels. Results revealed significant increases in state anxiety as a function of dichotic testing for all stimulus types. There was not a significant difference, however, in state anxiety between the stimulus types. A subset of subjects (n=44) repeated the experiment a second time. There were no significant differences in state anxiety experienced due to dichotic listening between the two sessions. Results from the present study confirm that dichotic listening induces significant increases in state anxiety in a group of young adults with normal hearing. Although statistically significant, the mean increase in state anxiety does not exceed normative levels for college students. Further, the effect of anxiety on dichotic speech recognition performance appears minimal in this population.