Poor frequency selectivity causes speech-in-noise difficulty and complicates hearing aid fitting
Evidence
On the other hand, however, Baer and Moore observed very large effects of reduced frequency selectivity for that same speech signal presented in noise. In this case, poor frequency selectivity of the impaired ear increases the susceptibility to masking by other sounds. The poor frequency selectivity of the impaired ear has also been linked to poor abilities to understand speech in noise for people with SNHL (e.g., Dubno, Dirks, & Morgan, 1984). Upward spread of masking can also be problematic, particularly in amplified situations. The low-frequency components of a noise may mask higher frequencies. Such upward spread of masking can also complicate fitting hearing aids for listeners with low-frequency hearing loss, as gain in the low frequencies can lead to upward spread of masking into regions of good hearing. — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 1698
Categorization
Category: Causal Relationships
- XREF: Upward spread of masking interfering with good-hearing regions evokes the structural irony theme in things like the Milgrom law-merchant material — a well-intended intervention creating a new problem elsewhere.
Related
- Frequency selectivity in normal-hearing listeners worsens at high sound levels (similarity 0.94)
- Cochlear frequency selectivity decreases as sound level increases (similarity 0.89)
- Hearing loss impairs frequency selectivity beyond what stimulus level differences explain. (similarity 0.85)
- Reduced frequency selectivity partly explains diminished sensitivity to inherent masker fluctuations (similarity 0.85)
- Reduced frequency selectivity hurts speech perception less than reduced audibility does (similarity 0.85)
- Cochlear damage increases susceptibility to masking, hurting speech in noise. (similarity 0.84)
- Frequency-specific hearing loss drives multi-band hearing aid processing (similarity 0.84)
- Presbyacusis shows frequency-dependent recruitment strongest at high frequencies (similarity 0.84)
- Impaired frequency selectivity and lost suppression increase masking and reduce spectral contrasts (similarity 0.84)
- Wider peripheral tuning from hearing loss suppresses low-frequency fluctuation amplitude (similarity 0.84)
- Impaired frequency selectivity directly causes poor speech discrimination (similarity 0.84)
- Impaired frequency selectivity, suppression, and fluctuation use jointly degrade hearing (similarity 0.83)
- Sensorineural hearing loss worsens masking beyond mere threshold elevation (similarity 0.83)
- Low-frequency maskers mask high-frequency signals more than the reverse, and this worsens with intensity. (similarity 0.83)
- Loud speech sounds can mask quieter ones within the same utterance for hearing-impaired listeners (similarity 0.83)