Temporal processing aids intelligibility only for clear isolated single words

Evidence

Lastly, we showed an effect of individual differences in temporal processing on intelligibility, but this effect was limited to easily perceptible (high SNR) single words. Possibly, temporal information is most useful when the stimulus is clearly audible and no other semantic information is available. These results suggest that different variables modulate listening in different situations, and that listeners may vary not only in their overall level of performance but also in how well they perceive speech in a particular situation depending on which auditory/cognitive abilities underpin listening in that situation and how successful the listener is at employing them. — Dijk, Pim van, Physiology, Psychoacoustics and…, 1277

Categorization

• QUESTION: Counterintuitive result — why would temporal cues matter most at high SNR when they are typically thought relevant for degraded signals? Worth chasing the follow-up work.