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An Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effects of Ageing on Sentence Processing
Published on: October 25, 2019
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Syntactic complexity differentially affects auditory sentence comprehension performance for individuals with
Junyoung Shin1, Shinhee Noh1, Jimin Park1
1Department of Communication Disorders, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Frontiers in Psychology
|November 15, 2023
Summary
Older adults with hearing loss (HL) struggle more with complex passive sentences than active ones. Working memory capacity is key for understanding these difficult sentences in individuals with HL.
Area of Science:
- Audiology
- Neuroscience
- Linguistics
Background:
- Age-related hearing loss (HL) impacts auditory processing.
- Syntactic complexity in sentences poses comprehension challenges.
- Understanding cognitive-linguistic deficits in older adults with HL is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate auditory sentence comprehension difficulties in older adults with hearing loss (HL) compared to typical-hearing (TH) individuals.
- To examine the effect of manipulated syntactic complexity (sentence type and length) on sentence comprehension.
- To identify the role of memory capacity in sentence comprehension for individuals with HL.
Main Methods:
- 22 individuals with HL and 24 controls completed sentence comprehension tests and memory assessments.
- Pure-tone audiometry was used to assess hearing status.
- Statistical analyses included generalized linear mixed effects models and stepwise regression.
Main Results:
- Older adults with HL showed significantly poorer performance on passive sentences compared to active sentences.
- Sentence length did not show a significant effect on comprehension accuracy.
- Working memory capacity was the strongest predictor of passive sentence comprehension in the HL group.
Conclusions:
- Hearing loss in older adults detrimentally affects the processing of syntactically complex passive sentences.
- Individuals with HL may experience challenges with sentences demanding higher cognitive and working memory resources.
- Findings highlight the interplay between auditory processing, cognitive function, and linguistic comprehension in aging.
Keywords:
age-related hearing lossauditory sentence comprehensionlistening effortsyntactic complexityworking memoryMore Related Videos
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