Type of Speech Material Affects Acceptable Noise Level Test Outcome

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Speech and Hearing Science
• Psychoacoustics

Background:

• The acceptable noise level (ANL) test measures an individual's tolerance for background noise during speech comprehension.
• ANL is used in hearing aid fitting and may predict hearing aid success, independent of hearing loss or age.
• Previous studies reported inconsistent test-retest reliability for the ANL test, possibly due to varied speech materials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if speech material meaningfulness and semantic coherence affect ANL outcomes.
• To assess ANL repeatability across different speech material types.
• To determine if ANL scores correlate with self-reported hearing difficulties and listening effort.

Main Methods:

• Compared ANLs using three speech materials: non-meaningful ISTS, meaningful audiology sentences, and conversational speech.
• Collected ANL data from 57 adults with good hearing.
• Correlated ANL results with questionnaire data on hearing-related limitations and listening effort.

Main Results:

• Speech material meaningfulness, not semantic coherence, influenced ANL; less noise was accepted for non-meaningful speech.
• ANL repeatability was consistent across all tested speech materials.
• ANL scores were associated with self-reported activity limitations in everyday listening situations.

Conclusions:

• Meaningful speech materials can be used in clinical settings for ANL testing without compromising repeatability.
• The ANL test shows potential for predicting real-world listening challenges.
• ANL provides valuable insights into an individual's ability to cope with noise during speech perception.