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Updated: Jul 7, 2026
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An Experimental Paradigm for Measuring the Effects of Ageing on Sentence Processing
Published on: October 25, 2019
Bilingualism and Aging: Their Impact on Speech Perception in Noise Using the AzBio Sentence Test.
Miwako Hisagi1, Beatriz Barragan2, Karina Romero1
1Department of Communication Disorders, Doctor of Audiology Program, California State University, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA.
Journal of the American Academy of Audiology
|July 6, 2026
Summary
Older bilingual adults show decreased speech recognition in noise, impacting both languages. This highlights the combined effects of aging and bilingualism on auditory processing.
Area of Science:
- Audiology
- Gerontology
- Psycholinguistics
Background:
- Age-related hearing loss is increasing, particularly in the large US bilingual population.
- There is a need for effective speech perception assessment tools for Spanish-speaking and bilingual (BI) older adults.
- The AzBio Sentence Test (AzBio) assesses speech perception in challenging environments; a Spanish version is now available.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore speech recognition characteristics in older bilingual adults.
- To examine the performance of younger and older proficient Spanish-English bilinguals on the AzBio.
- To compare performance in quiet and noisy conditions in both English and Spanish.
Main Methods:
- Preliminary quasi-experimental group design.
- Twenty-one participants: young monolinguals, young bilinguals, and older bilinguals.
- AzBio Sentence Test administered in quiet and noisy conditions (0 and -3 dB SNR) in English and Spanish.
Main Results:
- In quiet, older bilinguals performed better in Spanish, while younger bilinguals performed better in English.
- In noise, older bilinguals' advantage diminished, showing similar performance to younger individuals.
- Young monolinguals and bilinguals showed no performance difference in English.
Conclusions:
- Aging negatively impacts speech recognition in noisy environments for bilingual individuals in both languages.
- Bilingualism and aging combined pose significant challenges to speech recognition.
- Understanding these impacts is crucial for clinical assessment and intervention.
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