Audiology research
Temporal Auditory Resolution, Timed Motor Responses to Auditory Cues, and Phonological Processing in Swedish Children with Cochlear Implants and Normal Hearing Peers
By Löwgren K and Sahlén B.
Abstract
Background
Hearing with a cochlear implant (CI) presents challenges for speech perception, particularly in acoustically complex environments. Auditory temporal resolution, defined as the ability to detect brief changes in an ongoing acoustic signal, is one factor that may contribute to these difficulties. Accurate discrimination of speech sounds is essential for children's language development and vocabulary acquisition, as subtle temporal variations in speech can alter word meaning.
Methods
We investigated the ability to detect brief auditory cues at the millisecond level using a gap detection in noise task. Participants also completed non-verbal tasks (reaction time and finger tapping) and a verbal task (nonword repetition), all of which rely on the perception, processing and timing of brief temporal events. Fifteen children with CI were compared with fifteen matched peers with normal hearing.