title: The time course and magnitude of perceptual acclimatization to frequency responses: evidence from monaural fitting of hearing aids.
abstract: At high presentation levels, normally aided ears yield better performance for speech identification than normally unaided ears, while at low presentation levels the converse is true [S. Gatehouse, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 86, 2103-2106 (1989)]. To explain this process further, the speech identification abilities of four subjects with bilateral symmetric sensorineural hearing impairment were investigated following provision of a single hearing aid. Results showed significant increases in the benefit from amplifying speech in the aided ear, but not in the control ear. In addition, a headphone simulation of the unaided condition for the fitted ear shows a decrease in speech identification. The benefits from providing a particular frequency spectrum do not emerge immediately, but over a time course of at least 6-12 weeks. The findings support the existence of perceptual acclimatization effects, and call into question short-term methods of hearing aid evaluation and selection by comparative speech identification tests.
authors.affiliation: MRC Institute of Hearing Research (Scottish Section), Royal Infirmary, Glasgow.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gatehouse
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001301:Audiometry, Pure-Tone; D001302:Audiometry, Speech; D001309:Auditory Threshold; D004007:Dichotic Listening Tests; D005260:Female; D006310:Hearing Aids; D006312:Hearing Loss, Bilateral / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010470:Perceptual Masking; D010898:Pitch Perception; D011304:Presbycusis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000534:rehabilitation; D013063:Speech Discrimination Tests