title: Test-retest reliability of a forced-choice procedure for determining most comfortable loudness level for speech.
abstract: A new forced-choice procedure for measuring comfortable loudness for speech was evaluated on a group of 30 normal-hearing subjects. The test-retest reliability was determined for the forced-choice ascending and descending approach and found to be high (r = 0.83 and 0.84). Clinical reliability indicated that 80 to 83% of the subjects varied no more than 5 dB upon retest. In a second experimental session, comparisons between the forced-choice procedure and the method of limits (ascending and descending approaches) were evaluated on a group of 14 sensorineural subjects. Results indicated the forced-choice procedure eliminated the measurement differences found with the method of limits (ascending and descending approaches) and the forced-choice measurements remained stable across varying degrees and configurations of hearing loss. The procedure is fast, reliable, and has several advantages over the method of limits procedure.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001301:Audiometry, Pure-Tone; D001302:Audiometry, Speech / Q000379:methods*; D001309:Auditory Threshold; D005260:Female; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000175:diagnosis*; D006801:Humans; D008144:Loudness Perception; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013067:Speech Perception