title: Broadband auditory stream segregation by hearing-impaired and normal-hearing listeners.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the effects of hearing loss on auditory stream segregation of broadband inharmonic sounds.
  
  
  METHODS
  Auditory stream segregation by listeners with normal and impaired hearing was measured for 6-component inharmonic sounds ("A" and "B") using objective and subjective methods. Components in the A stimuli ranged between 1000 and 4000 Hz, whereas B stimuli were generated at the same frequency ratio but scaled upward in frequency relative to the A stimuli. In Experiment 1, streaming was measured by having listeners detect a delay inserted into a sequence of A and B stimuli (A_B_A_B_...) for B stimuli with different frequencies. In Experiment 2, streaming was measured using an ABA_ABA_... sequence, and the frequency of the B stimulus decreased until listeners reported that they could "no longer hear two separate streams."
  
  
  RESULTS
  Experiment 1 indicated no significant differences between groups in the size of the just detectable delay and no significant interactions between group and the scaling factor between the B and A stimuli. Experiment 2 revealed no significant differences in streaming abilities between normal-hearing and hearing-impaired groups.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Overall, results indicate that listeners with normal and impaired hearing have similar auditory streaming abilities for broadband inharmonic complex stimuli.
authors.affiliation: Starkey Hearing Research Center, 2150 Shattuck Ave., Suite 408, Berkeley, CA 94704, USA. susie_valentine@starkey.com
authors.forename: Susie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Valentine
authors.forename: Jennifer J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Lentz
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D001309:Auditory Threshold / Q000502:physiology*; D006309:Hearing / Q000502:physiology*; D034381:Hearing Loss / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011304:Presbycusis / Q000503:physiopathology; D011571:Psychoacoustics