[Reaction time and Békésy audiometry (author's transl)]

Electrophysiological work has elaborated that subjects having positive recruitment exhibit shorter response latencies than non-recruiting subjects do. Correspondingly we have investigated in this paper, if subjectively measured reaction times also decrease in case of recruiting subjects. Our measurements have shown that the averaged reaction time (at 4 kHz) of recruiting subjects is significantly (p = 0.05) shorter than the value of a non-recruiting group. Because of the interindividual scattering of the results, however, measuring of reaction time ist not suitable to distinguish subjects with loudness recruitment from those having no recruitment. Comparison of reaction time and Békésy audiogram as recruitment test shows Békésy tracing to be more reliable. Finally the number of oscillations (N) per octave in Békésy tracing is discussed as a function of oscillation width (W). A general mathematical representation of this correlation is given by N = a.Wb. Constants a and b, depending on attenuation rate (2.5 dB/s) and frequency change rate (1 oct./min), are evaluated by statistical and graphical methods (a = 36.08, b = -0.71).