Exploring Age Differences in Absorption and Enjoyment during Story Listening

Abstract

Using naturalistic spoken narratives to investigate speech processes and comprehension is becoming increasingly popular in experimental hearing research. Yet, little is known about how individuals engage with spoken story materials and how listening experiences change with age. We investigated absorption in the context of listening to spoken stories, explored predictive factors for engagement, and examined the utility of a scale developed for written narratives to assess absorption for auditory materials. Adults aged 20–78 years (N = 216) participated in an online experimental study. Participants listened to one of ten stories intended to be engaging to different degrees and rated the story in terms of absorption and enjoyment. Participants of different ages rated the stories similarly absorbing and enjoyable. Further, higher mood scores predicted higher absorption and enjoyment ratings. Factor analysis showed scale items approximately grouped according to the original scale dimensions, suggesting that absorption and enjoyment experiences may be similar for written and spoken stories, although certain items discriminated less effectively between stories intended to be more or less engaging. The present study provides novel insights into how adults of different ages engage in listening and supports using naturalistic speech stimuli in hearing research.