Temporal order thresholds exceed gap detection because listeners must hold sound identities in memory

Evidence

If the experimenter asks the listener to report the order of two different sounds, the experiment becomes a temporal ordering experiment. Thresholds for reporting the temporal order of two sounds are much higher than those for detecting a gap between two sounds. This task is more difficult than gap detection, as the listener must store the identity of the two sounds in memory. — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 977

Gap detection experiments usually ask a listener to detect a silent gap between two sounds. However, experimenters can ask the listener whether one or two sounds are present. If the experimenter asks the listener to report the order of two different sounds, the experiment becomes a temporal ordering experiment. Thresholds for reporting the temporal order of two sounds are much higher than those for detecting a gap between two sounds. This task is more difficult than gap detection, as the listener must store the identity of the two sounds in memory. — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 977

Categorization

• DEFINE: Distinguishes gap detection from temporal ordering as separate experimental paradigms.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 977