Towards an ecological audiology: stereophonic listening chamber and acoustic environmental tests

An acoustic laboratory for reproduction of speech and acoustic environments is presented along with two sound field tests. Its design has been inspired by the LEDE (Living End Dead End) principle for construction of radio and music control rooms. The equipment and the 12 loudspeakers can simultaneously reproduce several stereophonic and monophonic recordings. The interesting feature is that the delayed first reflex in the LEDE room allows for a realistic perception of the recording room. A preliminary presentation of two newly developed tests for sound field listening is given. In DSIN. Directional Speech In Noise, the JFC (just follow conversation) threshold for continuous discourse is determined in 12 directions in quiet and in noise from +/- 60 degrees azimuth. In SEIT (Sound Environmental Identification Test), stereophonic acoustic environments are presented and the subject is asked to identify specific components and to characterize each environment as closely as possible. Results from tests with normal hearing subjects and examples of results with hearing impaired subjects are presented. The potential of the technique for use in aural rehabilitation, functional definition of auditory communication and quality assessment of hearing aids is discussed. It is pointed out that the term ecological audiology is suitable for describing the interaction between the communicating individual and the environment in a broad sense.