Reduced neural speech tracking in adolescents with listening difficulty

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Auditory Perception
• Developmental Psychology

Background:

• Listening difficulties (LiD) significantly impact adolescents' academic and social functioning.
• Understanding the neural underpinnings of speech-in-speech listening is crucial for developing effective interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the neural mechanisms of speech-in-speech listening in adolescents with LiD.
• To compare neural speech tracking (NST) between adolescents with LiD and typically developing (TD) peers.

Main Methods:

• Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was used to measure NST in 21 adolescents with LiD and 25 TD peers.
• A cocktail-party task assessed NST using theta-band inter-event phase coherence (IEPC) to acoustic edges under varying auditory conditions.
• Participants had normal audiograms and were matched for age, sex, race, and ethnicity.

Main Results:

• Adolescents with LiD exhibited reduced target-speech NST compared to TD peers.
• Theta-band IEPC to acoustic edges correlated with listening ability.
• Concurrent talker and spatial cues enhanced target-speech NST in TD adolescents but not in those with LiD.

Conclusions:

• Listening difficulties in adolescents are characterized by impaired attended speech processing, not enhanced competitor processing.
• Reduced integration of talker and spatial cues may underlie real-world listening challenges in LiD.
• Theta-band NST serves as a clinically relevant neural index for everyday listening and potential intervention targets.