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Above, Below, and Beyond: Distinct Vertical‑Plane Localization Profiles in Normal Hearing Listeners
1All India Institute of Speech and Hearing, Center of Hearing Sciences, Manasa Gangotri, Mysuru, Karnataka 570006,India.
Journal of Otology
|March 2, 2026
Summary
Normal-hearing individuals show three distinct vertical sound localization patterns: consistently good performance, difficulty identifying sounds above/below, or trouble distinguishing front/back. These profiles highlight variations in spatial hearing abilities.
Area of Science:
- Auditory perception
- Spatial hearing
- Psychoacoustics
Background:
- Vertical sound perception is crucial for spatial hearing, enabling detection of sound sources above and below.
- Front-back sound localization contributes to a 3D auditory experience.
- Variability in vertical sound localization among normal-hearing (NH) individuals is not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize the different patterns of vertical sound localization abilities in normal-hearing individuals.
- To investigate variability in top-bottom and front-back sound identification using spatialized audio.
Main Methods:
- Fifty-one normal-hearing participants (18-35 years) performed three headphone-based vertical localization tasks.
- Tasks included top-down identification, front-back identification, and front-plane discrimination.
- Hierarchical Cluster Analysis (HCA) identified listener profiles, validated by Fisher's Discriminant Function Analysis (FDA).
Main Results:
- Hierarchical Cluster Analysis identified three distinct listener groups.
- Cluster 1: Good performance across all tasks. Cluster 2: Impaired top-bottom identification. Cluster 3: Impaired front-back identification.
- Fisher's Discriminant Function Analysis validated cluster membership with 98% accuracy.
Conclusions:
- Normal-hearing individuals exhibit three distinct vertical sound localization profiles.
- These profiles include uniform performers, those with top-bottom identification deficits, and those with front-back identification deficits.
- Observed profiles may result from combined acoustic and non-acoustic perceptual factors.
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