Effects of linguistic experience on the ability to benefit from temporal and spectral masker modulation

Masked speech perception can often be improved by modulating the masker temporally and/or spectrally. These effects tend to be larger in normal-hearing listeners than hearing-impaired listeners, and effects of temporal modulation are larger in adults than young children [Hall et al. (2012). Ear Hear. 33, 340-348]. Initial reports indicate non-native adult speakers of the target language also have a reduced ability to benefit from temporal masker modulation [Stuart et al. (2010). J. Am. Acad. Aud. 21, 239-248]. The present study further investigated the effect of masker modulation on English speech recognition in normal-hearing adults who are non-native speakers of English. Sentence recognition was assessed in a steady-state baseline masker condition and in three modulated masker conditions, characterized by spectral, temporal, or spectro-temporal modulation. Thresholds for non-natives were poorer than those of native English speakers in all conditions, particularly in the presence of a modulated masker. The group differences were consistent across maskers when assessed in percent correct, suggesting that a single factor may limit the performance of non-native listeners similarly in all conditions.