A comparison of video versus conventional visual reinforcement in 7- to 16-month-old infants.
OBJECTIVE
To compare response patterns to video visual reinforcement audiometry (VVRA) and conventional visual reinforcement audiometry (CVRA) in infants 7-16 months of age.


METHODS
Fourteen normal-hearing infants aged 7-16 months (8 male, 6 female) participated. A repeated measures design was used. Each infant was tested with VVRA and CVRA over 2 different sessions. The total number of head turns prior to habituation, hit rate (response consistency), false alarm rate, and sensitivity for each reinforcement condition were evaluated.


RESULTS
No significant differences were found between the 2 reinforcement methods for total number of head turns, hit rate, false alarm rate, or sensitivity. Overall, results showed no difference between the 2 reinforcer conditions in infants 7-16 months of age.


CONCLUSIONS
The results of the present study suggest that infants in the 7- to 16-month-old age range respond similarly to VVRA and CVRA as measured by response consistency and false alarm rate. VVRA is, therefore, a viable option for testing hearing in infants. However, prior to clinical implementation, the effectiveness of VVRA should be explored in infants with hearing loss.
Lowery
Kristy J
KJ
Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology, University of Tennessee, 424 South Stadium Hall, Knoxville, TN 37996-0740, USA. klowery2@utk.edu
von Hapsburg
Deborah
D
Plyler
Erin L
EL
Johnstone
Patti
P
D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001299:Audiometry / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006185:Habituation, Psychophysiologic; D019416:Head Movements; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012054:Reinforcement, Psychology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014741:Video Recording