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Sensitivity in changing-loudness aftereffects as indicated by an adjustment procedure: implications regarding
1University of Ulster at Jordanstown, Newtownabbey, Northern Ireland. ah.reinhardt-rutland@ulst.ac.uk
The Journal of General Psychology
|November 27, 1998
Summary
Reduced auditory sensitivity is not always due to sensory fatigue. Changing-loudness aftereffects show that sensitivity remains stable, suggesting methodological factors, not fatigue, influence perception.
Area of Science:
- Auditory perception
- Psychoacoustics
- Sensory neuroscience
Background:
- Auditory aftereffects are often linked to sensory fatigue, which causes reduced sensitivity.
- However, changing-loudness aftereffects have previously shown to be unaffected by reduced sensitivity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether reduced sensitivity is a necessary component of changing-loudness aftereffects.
- To determine if sensory fatigue is the underlying cause of reduced sensitivity in auditory aftereffects.
Main Methods:
- An adjustment procedure was used to measure the magnitude of changing-loudness aftereffects.
- Listeners adjusted the rate of intensity change in stimuli to perceive steady loudness.
- Sensitivity was measured by the standard deviation of these settings.
Main Results:
- The magnitude of increasing-loudness and decreasing-loudness aftereffects varied with adaptation conditions.
- Listener sensitivity, indicated by standard deviation, remained constant across conditions.
- This indicates that reduced sensitivity is not a consistent feature of these aftereffects.
Conclusions:
- Reduced sensitivity is not a reliable indicator of sensory fatigue in auditory aftereffects.
- The observed changes in sensitivity may be a methodological artifact related to processing mechanisms.
- Aftereffect measurement procedures should consider the potential influence of direct versus indirect processing mechanisms.