bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Assessment of Nasalization in the Speech of Deaf Children
Authors: Stevens K. N. , Nickerson R. S. , Boothroyd A. , Rollins A. M.
Published: July 2014

Nasality is widely recognized as a problem in the speech of many deaf people. This paper describes one approach to the assessment of nasalization and to the development of visual aids to assist in the training of velopharyngeal control. The approach involves detection of the velopharyngeal opening during voiced sounds by means of a small accelerometer attached to the nose, and presentation of the accelerometer output on a computer-controlled visual display. The display may be used as a training aid, or for the purpose of analyzing either recorded or live speech. Objective data are presented on some of the properties of the accelerometer output for the speech of people with normal hearing and of a number of children whose hearing is severely impaired. These data show inadequate velopharyngeal control, particularly improper nasalization of certain vowels, for a significant number of the deaf children. For a group of the hearing-impaired children, subjective judgments of the adequacy of velopharyngeal control and of other speech attributes were obtained. Correlations among these judgments and relations between judgments of adequacy of velopharyngeal control and the objective measures of nasalization are shown. Some comments are made on the development of procedures for the training of velopharyngeal control using the display as an aid.
Latency of Vocalization Onset: Stutterers Versus Nonstutterers
Authors: Starkweather C. Woodruff , Hirschman Paula , Tannenbaum Robert S.
Published: July 2014

Eleven stutterers and matched controls were asked to produce as quickly as possible each of 26 different syllables following a visual stimulus. Three trials were given for each syllable. Responses were filtered to remove supraglottally produced sounds, and the time between the visual stimulus and the onset of vocalization was measured by a voice-operated relay and a computer’s internal clock. The results suggested that stutterers are slower in initiating vocalization across a wide variety of syllables, and the difference averages about 65 msec. Furthermore, when phonologic conditions delayed voice onset by a comparable amount, the stutterers gained enough time so that no significant differences were observed between the two groups. The results are interpreted as suggesting that auditory dysfunction cannot be a cause for slower vocalization reaction time in stutterers but that either vocal dysfunction or a lack of cerebral dominance may be responsible for these differences.
Imitative Modeling as a Theoretical Base for Instructing Language-Disordered Children
Authors: Courtright John A. , Courtright Illene C.
Published: July 2014

A modification of Bandura’s social learning theory (imitative modeling) was employed as a theoretical base for language instruction. This approach was experimentally compared to an alternative technique which required the subject to literally match each stimulus statement made by the clinician (mimicry). The results support the prediction that modeling is more effective in teaching the subject the appropriate grammatical rule, which he or she initially lacked. Moreover, subjects in the modeling condition exhibited both greater retention of the rule and a more successful generalization of it to novel contexts. The results are explained in terms of an “interference hypothesis,” which suggests that a client’s overt verbalization may interfere with the cognitive processing necessary to learn an abstract language rule.
Recognition of Verbal Labels of Pictured Objects and Events by 17- to 30-Month-Old Infants
Authors: Beckwith Leila , Thompson Spencer K.
Published: July 2014

A technique for efficiently presenting a large number of vocabulary items was developed for the testing of vocabulary comprehension in children younger than two years. The technique, incorporating slides of real objects, had the advantages of maintaining the child’s attention, motivating task continuation, and overcoming the extraneous contextual cues of test materials. The subjects were 106 children aged 17 to 30 months from a wide range of social status groups, and from both English and Spanish language families. Results indicated significant stability over time as well as a significant relationship to maternal report. Analysis of errors suggested that comprehension develops similarly to production, in that simple nouns were the easiest items, verbs were more difficult, and modifiers and locatives were the most difficult. There were no significant main effects of sex or social status. However, specific environmental variables such as parental attitudes and playmate patterns were significantly correlated with test performance. More flexible family control systems and more interaction with peers were both associated with better vocabulary comprehension in firstborn children.
Word Frequency and Stuttering: The Relationship to Sentence Structure
Authors: Ronson Irwin
Published: July 2014

This experiment was designed to determine the relationship between word-frequency level and stuttering within the context of three selected sentence types: simple-active-affirmative-declarative, negative, and passive. Sixteen adult stutterers, rated into three groups of mild, moderate, and severe, read aloud 36 test sentences which were controlled for other linguistic factors known to affect stuttering. The results indicated that when the group rating was severe and the sentence type was either simple-active-affirmative-declarative or negative, stuttering increased significantly as word-frequency level decreased; no relationship was discerned between stuttering and word-frequency level within the passive sentence structure. It is suggested that stuttering in relation to word-frequency level is a differential response that is subject to variables of sentence type and severity rating of stuttering.
Criteria for Assessing Therapy Outcome in Speech Pathology and Audiology
Authors: Silverman Franklin H.
Published: July 2014

Speech pathologists and audiologists function as both producers and consumers of information concerning therapy outcome. In both roles they have to know the questions that need to be answered to adequately evaluate a therapy method and the factors that have to be considered when interpreting answers to such questions. An approach (in the form of a work sheet) is described here that can be used for both identifying and systematically evaluating the validity, reliability, and generality of information regarding impacts of therapy methods on persons who have communicative disorders and for identifying additional information needed to complete such an evaluation. The approach is used to assess the impacts of a therapy method.
Respiratory Kinematics in Profoundly Hearing-Impaired Speakers
Authors: Forner Linda L. , Hixon Thomas J.
Published: July 2014

Anteroposterior diameters of the rib cage and abdomen were measured in profoundly hearing-impaired individuals in a standing position during respiratory maneuvers and utterance tasks. Data were charted in relative motion diagrams (rib cage vs abdomen) which enabled graphic solution for lung volume change, relative volume displacements of the rib cage and abdomen, and chest wall configuration. Function during resting tidal breathing was within normal limits. Function during utterance was frequently deviant in one or more of the following regards: (1) linguistic programming, (2) mechanical adjustments of respiratory origin, and (3) mechanical adjustments of the larynx and upper airway. Deviancies in mechanical adjustments of respiratory origin were confined mainly to lung volume events. Overall function is discussed with respect to the potential muscular mechanisms governing different respiratory behaviors. We conclude that both a lack of normal auditory sensation and inappropriate early speech skill instruction are responsible for the respiratory behaviors observed. Implications for clinical endeavors are detailed and data are presented to illustrate the power of biofeedback in managing speech disorders in the profoundly hearing impaired, when those disorders are partially respiratory based.
Subjective Evaluation of Articulatory Effort
Authors: Parnell Martha , Amerman James D.
Published: July 2014

Thirty-two adult speakers repeated pairs of CV syllables, each embedded in a carrier phrase, and designated the consonant member of the pair they believed required more articulatory effort. The task was performed under three speaking conditions (1) normal conversational speech, (2) whispered speech, and (3) pantomimed speech. Voicing and fricative manner of production appeared to be related to judgments of greater articulatory effort. Highly consistent responses across the three speaking conditions suggest other psychological factors to which subjects respond during conditions of normal as well as subvocal modes of speaking. Analyses yielded significant correlations between articulatory effort responses and current data concerning children’s phonological acquisition, children’s phoneme substitution patterns, and frequency of occurrence of consonants in conversational English.
Perception of Temporal Order of Vowels and Consonant-Vowel Syllables
Authors: Cullinan Walter L. , Erdos Elaine , Schaefer Ronald , Tekieli Mary Ellen
Published: July 2014

Recent findings indicate that the presence of formant transitions aids the perception of the order of stimuli in repeating sequences of vowels or consonant-vowel (CV) syllables. In this study, 12 listeners reported the perceived order of four vowels or CVs in repeating sequences. Stimuli ranged in duration from 75 to 300 msec in 25-msec steps. Four stimulus sequences were used (1) varying vowels (Vv), (2) CVs with varying consonants but a constant vowel (CvVc), (3) CVs with a constant consonant but varying vowels (CcVv), (4) CVs with consonants and vowels varying (CvVv). Percentage of correct identification of order was significantly higher and mean threshold duration significantly lower for the CvVv and CvVc conditions than for the Vv condition. Mean number of sequences per response was significantly smaller for the CvVv condition than for the other conditions. Threshold durations ranged from 100 msec for the CvVv sequences to 135 msec for the Vv sequences. Ordering performance was nearly perfect for stimulus durations of about 225 to 250 msec. The results support the hypothesis that as stimuli in repeating sequences more closely resemble connected speech, listeners can more easily correctly identify the order of the stimuli.
Estimation of Lung Volume Change from Torso Hemicircumferences
Authors: Baken R. J.
Published: July 2014

A technique for estimating lung volume change is described. Voltages proportional to rib cage and abdominal hemicircumferences are produced by Whitney-gage transducers in a standard bridge circuit. The weighted sum of these voltages can be adjusted to produce a good estimate of lung volume change. The instrumentation does not obstruct articulatory movements, load the chest wall, or require restraint of the subject. In addition, it is easy and inexpensive to construct.
A Comparison of the Effects of Filtering and Sensorineural Hearing Loss on Patterns of Consonant Confusions
Authors: Wang Marilyn D. , Reed Charlotte M. , Bilger Robert C.
Published: July 2014

It has been found that listeners with sensorineural hearing loss who show similar patterns of consonant confusions also tend to have similar audiometric profiles. The present study determined whether normal listeners, presented with filtered speech, would produce consonant confusions similar to those previously reported for the hearing-impaired listener. Consonant confusion matrices were obtained from eight normal-hearing subjects for four sets of CV and VC nonsense syllables presented under six high-pass and six low-pass filtering conditions. Patterns of consonant confusion for each condition were described using phonological features in a sequential information analysis. Severe low-pass filtering produced consonant confusions comparable to those of listeners with high-frequency hearing loss. Severe high-pass filtering gave a result comparable to that of patients with flat or rising audiograms. And, mild filtering resulted in confusion patterns comparable to those of listeners with essentially normal hearing. An explanation in terms of the spectrum, the level of speech, and the configuration of the individual listener’s audiogram is given.
Perceptual Assessment of Normalcy of Speech Following Stuttering Therapy
Authors: Ingham Roger J. , Packman Ann C.
Published: July 2014

Stuttering therapy procedures such as rhythmic or prolonged speech have been criticized because afterward the subject may speak fluently but also abnormally. Although assessments of the normalcy of speech behavior have been rare, some recent procedures have included perceptual assessments of certain dimensions of speech behavior. This study reports an evaluation procedure where listeners endeavored to distinguish between intermingled speech samples obtained from treated stutterers and a peer group of normally fluent speakers. Different groups of listeners were asked to judge the prosody, rate, fluency, and naturalness of posttreatment samples from a group of stutterers treated with a prolonged speech procedure, and a matched peer group of normally fluent speakers. No significant differences were found between the assessments of stutterers and normally fluent speakers. However, when another group of listeners was asked to decide whether the speech samples were from treated stutterers or normal speakers, the stutterers received significantly fewer normal speaker judgments. Interrelationships between the judgment scales were evaluated along with a forced-choice procedure for assessing the normalcy of individual speech samples.
Communicative Performance of Mentally Retarded Adults in Four Conversational Settings
Authors: Bedrosian Jan L. , Prutting Carol A.
Published: July 2014

A sociolinguistic analysis of the communicative performances and social interactions of four mentally retarded adults was conducted. Role relationships were examined along dimensions of dominance-submission and control in various conversational settings. Audiotape recordings were made of each adult’s conversation while engaged in discourse with his speech-language pathologist, peers, parents, and with a normal young child. Relational communication coding schemes involving the analysis of questions and subsequent responses were applied to the data. Results indicated that the retarded adults, though not always able to hold a dominant position in a conversation, were capable of expressing the same types of control as normal adults. The types of control expressed by each subject varied as a function of the conversational setting. Furthermore, differences existed in the types and frequencies of control expressed across subjects. These findings suggest that a sociolinguistic approach provides important information regarding the mentally retarded adult’s communicative performance.
Vocal Roughness and Jitter Characteristics of Vowels Produced by Esophageal Speakers
Authors: Smith Bonnie E. , Weinberg Bernd , Feth Lawrence L. , Horii Yoshiyuki
Published: July 2014

Audiotape recordings of sustained vowels produced by nine esophageal speakers were subjected to acoustic and perceptual analysis. Results indicated that (1) the magnitude of vocal jitter present in the vowels was substantially larger than that observed in normal speakers and speakers with laryngeal/vocal disturbance, (2) listeners could reliably rate the severity of vocal roughness in the vowels, (3) voices of esophageal speakers were characterized by varying degrees of vocal roughness, and (4) mean fundamental frequency, mean jitter, or jitter ratio measures did not serve as useful predictors of the perceived severity of vocal roughness. These findings are interpreted to suggest that the mechanism esophageal speakers employ to regulate fundamental frequency is substantially different from that employed by normal speakers and that the identity of physical variables underlying the perception of roughness severity in naturally produced human speech is not well understood.
Presentation by Order of Difficulty of Test Tasks to Persons with Aphasia
Authors: Dumond Donna L. , Hardy James C. , Van Demark Ann A.
Published: July 2014

To determine the effects of arranging test tasks by order of difficulty, two test forms were administered to each of 20 patients with aphasia. The two test forms were split halves of the Porch Index of Communicative Ability. One of the test forms, Form EH, was presented to each patient with the subtests arranged for the individual subject in an order from easy to hard. The other test form, Form HE, was administered to each subject in the hard-to-easy order. There was no significant difference between the performance of the subjects on the Form EH and their performance on Form HE.
Sampling of Speech Pathology Treatment Activities: An Evaluation of Momentary and Interval Sampling Procedures
Authors: Brookshire R. H. , Nicholas L. S. , Krueger K.
Published: July 2014

Videotaped samples of aphasia treatment sessions were coded, using the Clinical Interaction Analysis System (CIAS), a 39-category system for recording the events that occur in clinician-patient interactions during aphasia treatment sessions. These coded records were then sampled according to various schedules and procedures and the fidelity with which each sampling schedule and procedure represented the content of the entire treatment record was evaluated. In addition, trained observers coded videotaped samples of treatment, using the CIAS with a number of sampling schedules and procedures. The fidelity with which these observers' records represented the content of the treatment sessions sampled was then evaluated. The results of the analysis indicated that momentary sampling at intervals distributed throughout the session generates more accurate records of session content than single longer samples taken from the session, unless those single samples comprise a major part of the session, and that sampling representativeness remains high even when only one event in ten is sampled, if sampled events are uniformly distributed throughout the session.
Effects of Sentence Structure on Sentence Elicited Imitation Responses
Authors: Hudgins Jo Carol , Cullinan Walter L.
Published: July 2014

This study investigates the effects of sentence structure on the number of error sentences and response latency in a sentence-repetition task. Forty female college students repeated short and long test sentences containing either a single self-embedded or right-branching subject-focus or object-focus relative clause. Sentences were also controlled for deletion of the relative pronoun of the relative clause. Sentence structure was found to affect sentence elicited imitation response accuracy and latency in a manner similar to the effects of structure on ease of comprehension. The findings are consistent with a canonical-sentoid strategy explanation of sentence processing during sentence imitation.
Multiplicative Effects on Sentence Comprehension for Combined Acoustic Distortions
Authors: Lacroix Paul G. , Harris J. Donald , Randolph Kenneth J.
Published: July 2014

This study was designed to explore the effect on speech comprehension of combining two types of signal distortion. A tape of clearly-enunciated sentences in quiet was distorted in each of four ways: low-pass (LP) filtering, time compression, interruption, and noise masking. Data are reported on a population of normal-hearing young men for multiple-choice answer tests of colloquial sentences of either LP filtered at 1, 2, 3, or 4 kHz, time compressed by computer at 250 words/min, interrupted (50 msec on—50 msec off), masked by speech-spectrum noise at +2 dB S/N, or given each of the 12 possible combinations of LP filtering plus the other three distortions. Individual distortion conditions were adjusted to reduce speech comprehension performance to about 90% accuracy. Low-pass filtering above 1 kHz reduced comprehension by no more than five to 10 percentage points, but when LP filtering was added to the other distortions in turn, latent effects were uncovered. The reduction in comprehension with the combined distortions was much greater than the simple additive effects of the distortion and LP filtering by themselves. For example, LP filtering above 2 kHz produced no measurable effect on sentence comprehension but this same distortion in combination with noise masking reduced performance from 89.4 to 59.7% correct (where 25% was chance). This study further validates the multiply-compounded nature of simultaneous types of distortion. The use of LP filtering extends the multiplicative principle to the simulated case of high-frequency hearing losses.
The Effects of Delayed Auditory Feedback and Masking on the Fundamental Frequency of Stutterers and Nonstutterers
Authors: Lechner Barbara Knauss
Published: July 2014

This investigation determined if fluency of the reader or type of auditory feedback changed characteristics of fundamental frequency or duration in oral reading by stutterers or nonstutterers. Mingographic tracings were made of sentences excerpted from tape recordings of paragraphs read by 15 adult male stutterers and 15 adult male nonstutterers in three conditions of feedback: normal auditory feedback (under earphones), delayed auditory feedback (0.14 sec delay), and masking (90 dB SPL). The data included 15 measures of fundamental frequency and two measures of duration. Stutterers read sentences in greater total time and with more downward inflections than nonstutterers. Comparison of the delayed auditory feedback (DAF) conditions with the normal auditory feedback (NAF) condition showed that the numbers of total, upward, and downward inflections and upward pitch shifts increased under DAF. In the DAF condition, average rates of upward and downward inflections decreased, and mean and median fundamental frequencies and total time increased. The only changes from the NAF to the masking condition were increases in mean and median fundamental frequencies.
Women Who Stutter: Personality and Speech Characteristics
Authors: Silverman Ellen-Marie , Zimmer Catherine H.
Published: July 2014

This investigation was undertaken to determine whether adult female stutterers, when compared to adult male stutterers, would (1) present a different pattern of speech fluency or (2) evidence reduced self-esteem or both. Spontaneous speech samples were obtained from 10 adult female stutterers, 10 adult male stutterers, and 10 adult female nonstutterers. All were administered the California Test of Personality and semantic differential forms designed to assess self-concept. The female stutterers produced significantly fewer instances of revision-incomplete phrase than either of the other two groups and were more heterogeneous with respect to total frequency of disfluency. The female stutterers evidenced a significantly higher level of self-esteem than the male stutterers. Moreover, unlike the male stutterers, the female stutterers did not consider themselves handicapped. This investigation indicates that there may be significant differences in the stuttering symptomatology of adults that are related to gender.
Articulatory Effects of Monaural and Binaural Masking in Normal Speaking Adults Wearing Palatal Appliances
Authors: Manning Walter H. , Riensche Linda L. , McCarty Gird A.
Published: July 2014

Ten normal speaking adults (five male, five female) performed three speaking tasks during conditions of monaural and binaural masking with and without complete palatal appliances. Significant effects on the subjects' articulation were found for the factors of masking type, palatal appliance and speaking task. No significant effects were found for monaural right- versus monaural left-ear masking or sex of the speakers. The findings are similar to previous results using binaural masking and indicate that the disruptive effect of monaural masking on the articulation of adult subjects is approximately midway between the effects of no masking and binaural masking. It is suggested that the lack of a significant effect for right-ear versus left-ear monaural masking may be due to the high degree of automatization which the subjects possessed for the stimuli used in the speaking tasks.
Syntactic and Phonological Influences on Children’s Articulation
Authors: Panagos John M. , Quine Mary Ellen , Klich Richard J.
Published: July 2014

The effects of syntactic and phonological structure on the consonant articulations of children with phonological deficits were investigated. Three structural variables were studied: syntactic structure (noun phrase, declarative sentence and passive sentence), word structure (monosyllable and disyllable) and word position (initial and final). Syntactic structure and word structure significantly affected the accuracy of articulation and the degree of word simplification. Structural complexity may contribute to overall hierarchial complexity, in turn causing children to simplify their speech.
Articulatory Behaviors Associated with Stuttering
Authors: Zimmermann Gerald
Published: July 2014

High speed (150 fps) einefluorographie techniques were used to record articulatory movements during fluent and dis fluent speech from four stutterers and control utter- ances from one normal speaker. Analyses of 11 perceptually disfluent utterances are reported. The results show: (1) interarticulator positions occurring in both perceptually fluent and disfluent utterances of stutterers were unlike those in fluent utterances of a normal speaker; (2) aberrant interarticulator positions preceded repetitive movements and static posturing; (3) consistent interarticulator repositioning which precedes termi- nation of an oscillatory movement or static position often results in: (a) the lowering of the jaw or lip, and/or (b) tongue shapes which resemble shapes found in normal speak- ers' fluent productions or the resting tongue shapes of the stutterer: The systematic re- positioning and other patterns found are discussed in terms of possible neuromotor mechanisms involved in disfluency. It is suggested that reflex interactions among the muscles of articulation might account for some of these effects. A brief discussion of theoretical and therapeutic implications is included.
Articulatory Dynamics of Fluent Utterances of Stutterers and Nonstutterers
Authors: Zimmermann Gerald
Published: July 2014

High speed cineradiography is used to describe the kinematics and spatial and temporal organization of perceptually fluent speech gestures for six stutterers and seven normal speakers. Movements of the lower lip and jaw are analyzed in the CVCs/mm/, /pp/, and/bb/. The results indicate that stutterers consistently show longer durations between movement onsets, achievements of peak velocity and voice onsets than normal speakers. Stutterers also show longer steady state positioning for the lip and jaw during vowel production and a greater asynchrony between lip and jaw movement. The results suggest that in perceptually fluent utterances the organization of events necessary for speech production differs between groups of stutterers and normal speakers.
Effects of Laryngeal Topical Anesthesia on Voice Fundamental Frequency Perturbation
Authors: Sorensen David , Horii Yoshiyuki , Leonard Rebecca
Published: July 2014

Fundamental frequency perturbation (jitter) during sustained vowel phonations of speakers under topical anesthesia of the larynx was investigated for five adult males. The results showed that the average jitter was significantly greater under the anesthesia than normal conditions, and that the jitter difference between the two conditions was more prominent at high frequency phonations. Implications of these data for tactile and proprioceptive feedback in phonatory frequency control are discussed.
Effects of Prestimulus Interval on Phonation Initiation Reaction Times
Authors: Izdebski Krzysztof
Published: July 2014

Latencies for phonation initiation (from adducted, abducted, and a subject method, prephonatory vocal-fold position) were studied in 30 young adults under an auditory reaction time paradigm as a function of random prestimulus intervals. Shortest latencies were obtained when the auditory stimulus was presented within a 1000- to 2000-millisecond flame. Stimulus delivery at intervals exceeding or preceding this time flame increases the latency of vocal reaction.
Predicting Speech Discrimination from the Audiometric Thresholds
Authors: Yoshioka Patricia , Thornton Aaron R.
Published: July 2014

To develop a method for predicting a speech discrimination score (SDS) from audiometric thresholds (SRT and pure-tones) three prediction systems were investigated: a stepwise multiple regression procedure, smear-and-sweep analysis and a clinical classification of the audiometric configuration. Test results of 529 ears with sensorineural hearing loss were taken from copies of audiograms obtained as part of a normal audiology clinic caseload. The three prediction systems had similar predictive ability and yielded slightly higher correlations with the SDS than those in previously reported studies. Squared correlations in this study ranged from 0.58 to 0.60. Smear-and-sweep analysis yielded the best results; however, its complexity makes clinical application difficult at this time. The stepwise multiple regression models or the clinical classification system provided more clinically useful methods for predicting the SDS. An over-riding influence of increasing variability in the SDS with increased hearing loss was observed and significantly limited the accuracy of prediction for the moderate-to-severe hearing loss groups. Small changes in the slope of the audiometric configuration were noted to affect the SDS only when the degree of hearing loss was slight.
Verification of Active and Passive Sentences by Aphasic and Nonaphasic Subjects
Authors: Brookshire R. H. , Nicholas L. E.
Published: July 2014

Aphasic and nonaphasic subjects participated in a sentence verification task in which they were asked to judge whether spoken sentences correctly described pictures presented with the sentences. True active and true passive sentences were presented, as well as, false active and passive sentences in which agents and objects were reversed. In addition, false active sentences in which either the subject, verb, or object did not match the picture were presented. Subjects' response accuracy and reaction times were recorded. Passive sentences were more difficult than active sentences for both groups of subjects, and false sentences were verified more quickly than true sentences for both groups. Both groups appeared to be processing sentences for meaning as they were received, rather than waiting for the entire sentence before beginning to process it for meaning. In general, performance of aphasic subjects resembled that of nonaphasic subjects, except that aphasic subjects consistently took longer to verify sentence meaning than nonaphasic subjects.
Experiments Re: Clinical Application of Reflex Modulation Audiometry
Authors: Reiter Levi A.
Published: July 2014

Two experiments were conducted on normal hearing adults to assess the audiometric test potential of reflex modulation (RM) when administered according to the descending method of limits. RM describes the inhibitory effect of a tone upon a subsequently occurring eyeblink reflex. Although RM conducted according to the method of constant stimuli has already been shown to produce RM results which agree well with voluntary audiometry in normal and hearing-impaired adults and children, the present concern is with the potential clinical application of RM, and in this regard the descending method may offer certain distinct advantages. In study one, a 2-kHz tone was presented at several descending intensities whereas in study two, four different frequencies (0.5, 1, 2, and 4 kHz) were presented in concurrent fashion, but again, the intensity of the complete set was decreased in successive steps. Sensitivity in both cases was 10 to 15 dB SL. Implications for the clinical application of RM audiometry are discussed.
Auditory Discrimination of Voiceless Fricatives in Children
Authors: Phatate D. Devenny , Umano Helen
Published: July 2014

Auditory discrimination of the voiceless fricatives/θ f ∫ s/was studied in 200 subjects between the ages of four and six and a half years. In the test task the subject was asked to remember one of the sounds and then to indicate each time this sound was presented. Two types of errors were analyzed. An error of omission was a failure to identify the remembered sound, and this type of error did not change with age. An error of commission, a failure to discriminate between the remembered sound and one of the other voiceless fricatives decreased with age. The results are interpreted as support for a theory of the development of auditory perception of speech in which discrimination of some properties in speech, such as relatively weak spectral cues and second formant transitions, have to be learned by a child.
The Temporal Course of the Masking of Tinnitus as a Basis for Inferring Its Origin
Authors: Penner M. J. , Brauth Steven , Hood Linda
Published: July 2014

For patients with tinnitus and sensorineural hearing loss, the intensity of broad-band noise required to mask the tinnitus increases by as much as 45 dB during a 30-minute period if the patient is exposed to noise. In contrast, the intensity required to mask an external tone remains nearly constant. Some speculations which might account for this result are offered. Excess neural activity is posited to be the physiological determinant of tinnitus and to be central, generated in the brainstem postsynaptic to the, eighth nerve.
Loudness Balance Calibration of Bone Conduction Vibrators
Authors: Barry S. Joseph , Vaughan Richard B.
Published: July 2014

An improved monaural loudness balance method of transferring calibration data among three physically dissimilar bone conduction vibrators was compared with the threshold method. In 19 of 21 possible comparisons, absolute differences between the transfer factors obtained with the two methods were 2.5 dB or less, showing that the monaural loudness balance procedure compares favorably with the threshold method.
Immediate and Delayed Story Recall by Hearing and Deaf Children
Authors: Gaines Rosslyn , Mandler Jean M. , Bryant Peter
Published: July 2014

Comprehension and retention of stories read by hearing children and by orally trained, congenitally, profoundly deaf children were studied. One normal and two experimentally confused stories were read by both groups, and recall was tested immediately after reading and following a week's delay. One experimentally confused story contained nonphonetic misspellings and was expected to cause difficulty for hearing readers; the other contained confused anaphoric references and was expected to cause difficulty for deaf readers. Amount recalled did not differ between the hearing and deaf groups on the normal story, but the deaf children were superior in amount recalled for both confused stories. However, the deaf children made significantly more distortions in their recall than did the hearing children. Orally trained deaf children may transfer the broad reconstructive strategies used for lip-reading purposes to reading style and thus engage in more guessing and reconstructive activity during reading than do hearing readers.
Evaluation of Hearing-Impaired Listeners Using a Nonsense-Syllable Test II. Syllable Recognition and Consonant Confusion Patterns
Authors: Dubno Judy R. , Dirks Donald D. , Langhofer Laurn R.
Published: July 2014

Syllable recognition ability and consonant confusion patterns were evaluated for 38 listeners with mild-to-moderate sensorineural hearing loss using the closed-set Nonsense-Syllable Test (NST). Performance for these materials varies as a function of consonant voicing, the position of the consonant in the syllable, and the accompanying vowel. Scores for listeners with steeply sloping audiometric configurations were consistently poorer than those for listeners with gradually sloping or flat audiograms. Consonant confusion analyses revealed place of articulation errors to be the most frequent, regardless of the listener's audiometric configuration. Analysis of consonant confusion patterns indicates the existence of a systematic relationship between consonant confusions and audiometric configuration. The NST findings are discussed in terms of the test's potential use and are compared to the results of existing confusion analyses.
The Ontogenesis of Agent
Authors: Olswang Lesley Barrett , Carpenter Robert L.
Published: July 2014

Children's early l- and 2-word utterances appear to encode the concept of agent, thus suggesting that this semantic notion has its origin in prior sensorimotor development. Specifically, the nonverbal concept of agent has been alluded to in research regarding young children's development ofthe cognitive notion of causality and the pragmatic category of requests for action. In this study children's awareness of the nonverbal agent concept was defined by gestural behaviors—that is, actions on objects and other people—occurring during request interactions with their mothers and the investigator. Three children were observed in their homes approximately once a month for 1 year, from their 11th through 22nd months of life. During each hour-long visit, the children were engaged in free play and in tasks designed to result in the children's requesting help from an adult. Based on the observation of the children's changing nonverbal behaviors over the 12 months, a 5-level developmental sequence documenting the evolution of the cognitive notion of agent is presented.
Parameters of Auditory Feedback
Authors: Siegel Gerald M. , Schork Edward J. , Pick Herbert L. , Garber Sharon R.
Published: July 2014

Adult speakers participated in three feedback conditions: Lombard, sidetone amplification, and delayed auditory feedback (DAF). All the procedures affected vocal intensity significantly, but only DAF caused changes in syllable rate. The three conditions did not provide equivalent data. Performance on any one of the feedback procedures was not predictive of performance on the others. Generalizations concerning auditory feedback must, therefore, take account of the particular method used and the parameter of speech studied.
An Investigation of Spontaneous Eye Blinks during Lipreading
Authors: Lesner Sharon A. , Hardick Edward J.
Published: July 2014

Tile role of spontaneous eye blinks was investigated for a lipreading task involving a videotaped recording of 20 sentences and a 948-word passage. Blinks were recorded electro-oculographically on one channel of a chart recorder while the audio correlate of the visual message was recorded simultaneously on the second channel. A comparison of the two records indicated that blink suppression occurred while the subjects lipread compared to times when no visual information was presented. The data also show that (a) subjects tended to blink during the visual pauses that occurred while the passage was being presented and (b) better lipreaders blinked less frequently than did poorer lipreaders. These results are examined in relation to the hypothesis that attention and blink rate are inversely related.
Thresholds and Psychometric Functions of the Individual Spondaic Words
Authors: Young Lamar L. , Dudley Brenda , Gunter Melissa Byers
Published: July 2014

Two experiments were conducted concerning the relative intelligibility of spondaic words. In the first experiment, the 36 spondaic words typically used in clinical settings to determine the Speech-Recognition-Threshold (SRT) were presented to 20 subjects at levels ranging from to 10 to 28 dB SPL. The percentage of persons able to repeat each word was plotted as a function of decibel sound-pressure level to determine (a) the sound-pressure level necessary to yield a 50% response point for each word, and (b) the rate at which each word became intelligible, for example, the slope of the psychometric function. By these two criteria 15 words were found to be homogeneous. In the second experiment, SRTs were obtained on 24 subjects with the full list of 36 words and with the 15 spondaic words that were homogenous with respect to the sound-pressure level necessary for a 50% correct response level and the rate of intelligibility growth. The results demonstrate that the two groups of spondaic words yield equivalent SRTs. The data suggest that an SRT may be determined with 15 spondaic words, which is as valid and accurate as the SRT determined with the entire list of 36 words.
Incudo-Stapedial Joint Pathology A Tympanometric Approach A Tympanometric Approach
Authors: Van de Heyning P. H. , Van Camp K. J. , Creten W. L. , Vanpeperstraete P. M.
Published: July 2014

Two-component tympanometry with a high probe-tone frequency enables a better distinction to be made between mobile but normal middle-ear systems and middle-ear systems suffering from necrosis, luxation, or disruption. Susceptance and conductance tympanograms obtained from 14 patients with confirmed pathological middle-ear lesions and 8 postmortem temporal bones, experimentally manipulated either surgically or with a 1 N HC1 solution, were compared to tympanograms obtained from 80 normal subjects of an earlier study. With a 660-Hz probe tone, normal middle ears generate bell-shaped or normal sharp W-shaped patterns, whereas the pathologies of the middle ear give rise to irregular multi-extrema tympanograms. The differences between the two types of multi-extrema curves are discussed in detail. The use of phase-angle tympanometry is recommended to enable a quick and accurate distinction between normal and abnormal types of multi-extrema tympanograms. This study also points out clearly that 220-Hz tympanograms do not allow clear differentiation between pathological and normal middle ears.
A Note on Temporal Errors in Fundamental Frequency Perturbation Measures for Sampled Waveforms
Authors: Troughear Richard
Published: July 2014

The errors involved in the use of an analog pitch period detector and a microcomputer to measure jitter and shimmer were explored. A simulation study using sinusoidal waveforms was conducted to ascertain the nature of temporal errors occurring in sampled signal frequency perturbation studies. The results indicate that even for jitter free signals errors can occur in frequency perturbation measurements, that the magnitude of these errors can be as high as actual frequency perturbations occurring in steady human vowels, and that the magnitude of the errors is not a function of fundamental frequency hut of the remainder of the ratio of signal period to sample period.
Three Models of Temporal Summation Evaluated Using Normal-Hearing and Hearing-Impaired Subjects
Authors: Gerken George M. , Gunnarson Adele D. , Allen Craig M.
Published: July 2014

Temporal summation effects were measured in normal-hearing and hearing impaired subjects using stimuli of different durations and temporal patterns. Threshold decreased with increasing stimulus duration for either single- or multiple-burst stimuli, but the hearing-impaired group showed smaller threshold shifts, which differed from those obtained with the normal-hearing group at the .0001 level of significance. Three models of temporal summation were evaluated: One model employed a time constant in an exponential function, one used a power function characterized by an exponent, and the last combined the properties of the exponential and power functions and was also characterized by an exponent. Estimates of the parameters that best described the data were obtained for each model. Data from the hearing-impaired subjects provided the most critical test of the models. The power function model and the combined model were both satisfactory with the range of stimulus durations used. but the exponential model failed to describe the data from the hearing-impaired subjects. It is suggested that there may not be a decrease in the time constant for temporal summation for subjects with sensorineural hearing-loss but that a factor related to the utilization of sensory input is altered.
Symbolic Play and Early Language Development in Normal and Mentally Retarded Children
Authors: Casby Michael W. , Ruder Kenneth F.
Published: July 2014

This study investigated the relationship of early language development and symbolic play behaviors in normal and mentally retarded children. Piaget' type IIA symbolic play, the ability to represent one object with another, was assessed by employing an object stimulus gradient. Forty children served as subjects: 20 normal and 20 trainable mentally retarded youngsters, 10 each at MLU Stage Pre-I and MLU Stage I. The results of a three-way ANOVA revealed significant main effects of MLU Stage and object condition and a significant interaction of MLU by object condition. The MLU Stage Pre-I children demonstrated significantly more restricted symbolic play than did the MLU Stage I children regardless of developmental status. A Pearson product-moment correlation between MLU and mean symbolic play score showed a high positive correlation between the two variables. Symbolic play which involves the use of one object to represent another was found to be a strong correlate of early language development.
Magnitude Estimation of Oral Cavity Distances
Authors: Siegel Gerald M. , Hanlon Joan M.
Published: July 2014

Adult subjects were asked to estimate relative distances between points marked on artificial palates fitted to their own palatal vaults. The artificial palates were less than 1 mm thick and extended posteriorly along the hard palate from the central incisors to approximately the second molars. Distances of 4, 8, 12, 16, and 20 mm were marked on four planes on the palates, one corresponding to the alveolar ridge, one anterior and two posterior to the ridge. The subjects felt raised points on the palates with their tongues and assigned numbers referenced to a standard distance on the alveolar plane. The eight adults performed the task very reliably, and the growth of scores corresponded closely to the increases in distance among the points judged. Accuracy did not vary with the particular plane, and performance was as accurate on the first trial as it was on the fifth. These subjects displayed very precise proprioceptive-kinesthetic knowledge of the oral cavity.
Effects of Parental Deafness and Early Exposure to Manual Communication on the Cognitive Skills, English Language Skill, and Field Independence of Young Deaf Adults
Authors: Parasnis Ila
Published: July 2014

Congenitally deaf college students with deaf parents who were native ASL signers (the ASL group) were compared to congenitally deaf college students who learned to sign between the ages of 6 and 12 years and who had hearing parents (the Delayed sign language group) on tests of cognitive skills, the cognitive style of field independence/dependence, and English language presented and produced through spoken, written, and sign modes. A control group of hearing college students was also included in the study. Differential effects of parental deafness and early exposure to manual communication, generally reported for deaf children, were not observed in the cognitive and communication performance of the experimental subjects. Furthermore, the Delayed sign language group performed significantly better than the ASL group on tests of speech perception and speech intelligibility. No differences on tests on cognitive skills were observed between the deaf and hearing subjects or between males and females. However, deaf females in both groups were more field dependent than deaf males and hearing females, while deaf males did not differ from hearing males. A test of speech reception skill was the only predictor of field independence for the ASL group while a test of cognitive skills was the only predictor of field independence for the other two groups.