Carlos Benítez-Barrera, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, UW-Madison
Pediatric Auditory Experience and Brain Lab, Waisman Center
Acoustic Environments for Children who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
Children who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (CDHH) are at risk for language delays due to hearing-related factors, limited caregiver input, and environmental noise reducing access to language. This study introduces the Speech Accessibility Index (SAI), a tool combining Speech Reception Thresholds (SRTs) and speech-to-noise ratios (SNRs) from LENA recordings to measure children’s access to language in real-world environments. Preliminary data show that caregiver input and language access predict language skills. The SAI shows promise for identifying at-risk CDHH and guiding interventions, such as optimizing home environments or using assistive listening devices.
Erik Jorgensen, Au.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Communication Sciences and Disorders, UW-Madison
Soundscape & Audiology Research Lab
Effects of Age and Hearing Aid Use on Auditory Environments
Hearing loss is associated with negative social-emotional health outcomes like loneliness and depression. In this study, we investigate whether this relationship is due to changes in hearing-related behavior that lead to differences in auditory environments experienced by listeners with normal hearing and hearing loss and how auditory environments are affected by hearing aid use. Using long-form audio recordings and machine learning soundscape classification, we investigate differences in the types of auditory environments experienced by different types of listeners. Our current data supports our hypotheses that auditory environments change with age, such that older adults with hearing loss spend more time in speech in quiet and less time in speech in noise than young adults. Auditory environments of older adults who use hearing aids are more like young adults than older adults who do not use hearing aids. Preliminary results suggest hearing aid use can help older adults maintain active auditory lifestyles