Identification Of Temporal Order Research Articles

Factors Underlying Individual Differences in Speech-Recognition Threshold (SRT) in Noise Among Older Adults.

Many older adults have difficulty understanding speech in noisy backgrounds. In this study, we examined peripheral auditory, higher-level auditory, and cognitive factors that may contribute to such difficulties. A convenience sample of 137 volunteer older adults, 90 women, and 47 men, ranging in age from 47 to 94 years (M = 69.2 and SD = 10.1 years) completed a large battery of tests. Auditory tests included measures of pure-tone threshold, clinical and psychophysical, as well as two measures of gap-detection threshold and four measures of temporal-order identification. The latter included two monaural and two dichotic listening conditions. In addition, cognition was assessed using the complete Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-3rd Edition (WAIS-III). Two monaural measures of speech-recognition threshold (SRT) in noise, the QuickSIN, and the WIN, were obtained from each ear at relatively high presentation levels of 93 or 103 dB SPL to minimize audibility concerns. Group data, both aggregate and by age decade, were evaluated initially to allow comparison to data in the literature. Next, following the application of principal-components factor analysis for data reduction, individual differences in speech-recognition-in-noise performance were examined using multiple-linear-regression analyses. Excellent fits were obtained, accounting for 60–77% of the total variance, with most accounted for by the audibility of the speech and noise stimuli and the severity of hearing loss with the balance primarily associated with cognitive function.

Longitudinal Changes in Auditory and Cognitive Function in Middle-Aged and Older Adults.

PurposeThis article aimed to document longitudinal changes in auditory function, including measures of temporal processing, and to examine the associations between observed changes in auditory and cognitive function in middle-aged and older adults.MethodThis was a prospective longitudinal study of 98 adults (66 women) with baseline ages ranging from 40 to 85 years. The mean interval between T1 baseline and T2 follow-up measurements was 8.8 years with a range of 7–11 years. Measures of hearing threshold, gap detection, and auditory temporal-order identification were completed at T1 and T2. Cognitive measures completed at T1 and T2 were the 13 scales of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Third Edition. Three approaches were taken to analyze these data: (a) examination of changes over time in group performance, (b) correlations and slopes between auditory and cognitive measures to examine concomitant rates of decline over the 9-year T1-to-T2 period, and (c) regression analyses examining associations between auditory performance at T1 and cognitive performance 9 years later at T2.ResultsFor the group data, there were significant declines in hearing loss, gap-detection thresholds at one frequency, and process-type measures of cognitive function from T1 to T2 matching the trends in the baseline cross-sectional data. Regression analyses of the longitudinal data revealed the strongest connection between auditory temporal-order processing and cognitive processing typically explaining 10%–15% of the variance.ConclusionsA significant amount of variance in rates of cognitive decline, T1 to T2, and subsequent cognitive performance (T2) was explained by measures of auditory function. Although hearing loss occasionally emerged as a significant factor, auditory temporal-order identification emerged much more frequently as the auditory measure most strongly associated with cognitive function.

Associations Between Measures of Auditory Function and Brief Assessments of Cognition.

PurposeThe two primary purposes of this report are (a) to compare the results of three brief cognitive screens in older adults and (b) to examine associations between performance on each of the screens and auditory function measured either concurrently or 9 years earlier.MethodThis was a prospective longitudinal study of 98 adults (66 women) with baseline ages ranging from 40 to 85 years. The mean interval between T1 baseline and T2 follow-up measurements was 8.8 years with a range from 7 to 11 years. Measures of hearing threshold, gap detection, and auditory temporal-order identification were completed at T1 and T2. The Mini-Mental State Examination was completed at T1 and T2, whereas the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) and A Quick Test were completed at T2 only.ResultsHigher scores and pass rates were obtained for the Mini-Mental State Examination than for the MoCA or the A Quick Test. The measures were moderately correlated among themselves and with the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale–Third Edition. Significant associations emerged frequently between auditory and cognitive functions, most often for the auditory measure of temporal-order identification, including dichotic measures of this ability.ConclusionsFrom this evaluation, the MoCA emerged as the preferred test for clinicians desiring a quick assessment of the cognitive function of their older patients. Auditory temporal-order identification is associated with cognitive function and explains about 10%–20% of the variation in cognitive function independent of age and hearing loss.Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12986021

Different Associations between Auditory Function and Cognition Depending on Type of Auditory Function and Type of Cognition.

Previous studies strongly suggest that declines in auditory threshold can lead to impaired cognition. The aim of this study was to expand that picture by investigating how the relationships between age, auditory function, and cognitive function vary with the types of auditory and cognitive function considered. Three auditory constructs (threshold, temporal-order identification, and gap detection) were modeled to have an effect on four cognitive constructs (episodic long-term memory, semantic long-term memory, working memory, and cognitive processing speed) together with age that could have an effect on both cognitive and auditory constructs. The model was evaluated with structural equation modeling of the data from 213 adults ranging in age from 18 to 86 years. The model provided good a fit to the data. Regarding the auditory measures, temporal-order identification had the strongest effect on the cognitive functions, followed by weaker indirect effects for gap detection and nonsignificant effects for threshold. Regarding the cognitive measures, the association with audition was strongest for semantic long-term memory and working memory but weaker for episodic long-term memory and cognitive speed. Age had a very strong effect on threshold and cognitive speed, a moderate effect on temporal-order identification, episodic long-term memory, and working memory, a weak effect on gap detection, and nonsignificant, close to zero effect on semantic long-term memory. The result shows that auditory temporal-order function has the strongest effect on cognition, which has implications both for which auditory concepts to include in cognitive hearing science experiments and for practitioners. The fact that the total effect of age was different for different aspects of cognition and partly mediated via auditory concepts is also discussed.

Are age-related changes in cognitive function driven by age-related changes in sensory processing?

Although there has been keen interest in the association among measures of sensory function and cognitive function for many years, in general, measures of sensory function have been confined to one or two senses and measures of threshold sensitivity (acuity). In this study, rigorous psychophysical measures of threshold sensitivity, temporal gap detection, temporal order identification, and temporal masking have been obtained, in hearing, vision, and touch. In addition, all subjects completed 15 subtests of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale, 3rd edition (WAIS–III). Data were obtained from 245 adults (18–87 years old) for the WAIS–III and for 40 measures of threshold sensitivity and temporal processing. The focus in this report is on individual differences in performance for the entire data set. Principal-components (PC) factor analysis reduced the 40 psychophysical measures to eight correlated factors, which were reduced further to a single global sensory processing factor. Similarly, PC factor analysis of the 15 WAIS–III scores resulted in three correlated factors that were further reduced to a single global cognitive function factor. Age, global sensory processing, and global cognitive function were all moderately and significantly correlated with one another. However, paired partial correlations, controlling for the third of these three measures, revealed that the moderate correlation between age and global cognitive function went to zero when global sensory processing was controlled for; the other two partial correlations remained intact. Structural models confirmed this result. These analyses suggest that the long-standing observation of age-related changes in cognitive function may be mediated by age-related changes in global sensory processing.

Auditory temporal-order processing of vowel sequences by young and elderly listeners

This project focused on the individual differences underlying observed variability in temporal processing among older listeners. Four measures of vowel temporal-order identification were completed by young (N=35; 18-31 years) and older (N=151; 60-88 years) listeners. Experiments used forced-choice, constant-stimuli methods to determine the smallest stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) between brief (40 or 70 ms) vowels that enabled identification of a stimulus sequence. Four words (pit, pet, pot, and put) spoken by a male talker were processed to serve as vowel stimuli. All listeners identified the vowels in isolation with better than 90% accuracy. Vowel temporal-order tasks included the following: (1) monaural two-item identification, (2) monaural four-item identification, (3) dichotic two-item vowel identification, and (4) dichotic two-item ear identification. Results indicated that older listeners had more variability and performed poorer than young listeners on vowel-identification tasks, although a large overlap in distributions was observed. Both age groups performed similarly on the dichotic ear-identification task. For both groups, the monaural four-item and dichotic two-item tasks were significantly harder than the monaural two-item task. Older listeners' SOA thresholds improved with additional stimulus exposure and shorter dichotic stimulus durations. Individual differences of temporal-order performance among the older listeners demonstrated the influence of cognitive measures, but not audibility or age.

Identification of asynchronous monaural and dichotic vowel pairs across the adult lifespan.

Temporal onset asynchrony is one cue that listeners use to identify concurrent vowels. Young (N=80; 18–31 years), middle-age (N=40; 40–55 years), and older (N=150; 60–88 years) adults identified vowel pairs in a temporal-order paradigm under monaural and dichotic stimulus presentations. Experiments used forced-choice constant-stimuli methods to determine the smallest stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA) between brief 70-ms vowels that enabled identification of the stimulus sequence. Vowels modified from four words (pit, pet, pot, and put) served as stimuli. All listeners identified the vowels in isolation with better than 90% accuracy. Results indicated that older listeners performed significantly poorer on monaural and dichotic temporal-order identification tasks than young listeners, with middle-age listeners in between. Correlations of performance with age across the full age span were moderate. For all three groups, SOAs for the dichotic task were significantly longer than those for the monaural task. A significant main effect of vowel pair was observed, indicating that not all vowel pairs were equally identifiable. Patterns of vowel pair identification were similar across all groups for both monaural and dichotic presentations; however, interactions with age group were observed. Effects of vowel order and dominance were also observed. [Work supported, in part, by NIA R01 AG022334.]

Measures of hearing threshold and temporal processing across the adult lifespan

Psychophysical data on hearing sensitivity and various measures of supra-threshold auditory temporal processing are presented for large groups of young (18–35 y), middle-aged (40–55 y) and older (60–89 y) adults. Hearing thresholds were measured at 500, 1414 and 4000 Hz. Measures of temporal processing included gap-detection thresholds for bands of noise centered at 1000 and 3500 Hz, stimulus onset asynchronies for monaural and dichotic temporal-order identification for brief vowels, and stimulus onset/offset asynchronies for the monaural temporal masking of vowel identification. For all temporal-processing measures, the impact of high-frequency hearing loss in older adults was minimized by a combination of low-pass filtering the stimuli and use of high presentation levels. The performance of the older adults was worse than that of the young adults on all measures except gap-detection threshold at 1000 Hz. Middle-aged adults performed significantly worse than the young adults on measures of threshold sensitivity and three of the four measures of temporal-order identification, but not for any of the measures of temporal masking. Individual differences are also examined among a group of 124 older adults. Cognition and age were found to be significant predictors, although only 10–27% of the variance could be accounted for by these predictors.

Backward recognition masking as a general type of interference in needed poststimulus processing

Auditory backward recognition masking (ABRM) has been argued to reflect interference in the storage and/or processing of a short-lived sensory form of information and has been viewed as a relatively invariant attribute of auditory pitch processing for very brief stimuli that are minimally separated in frequency (DeltaF). In contrast, the present study demonstrates that ABRM reflects interference with several basic principles of auditory processing. Measured in terms of target tone duration, rather than DeltaF, ABRM is demonstrated for target stimuli representing the interval of a musical fifth and masker-target stimulus intervals of a musical third, with thresholds ranging from approximately 22 to 55 msec and psychometric functions that are indicative of more than one contributing factor. On the basis of common underlying principles, the possibility that the threshold for the identification of temporal order of onset reflects ABRM and possible implications for the perception of complex stimuli, including speech, are discussed.

The 100‐ to 150‐ms window of auditory temporal processing and its consequences

Robert Efron (Percept. Psychophys. 14, 518–530 [1973]) demonstrated that the minimum duration of a percept is between 100 and 130 ms for auditory, vibrotactile, and visual stimuli, suggesting the presence of a most likely centrally located temporal integrator with a time window of about that length. Single‐unit studies in the cat auditory cortex also unveiled an integration time of 100‐150 ms (C. E. Schreiner and R. V. Urbas, Hear. Res. 21, 227–241 [1986]). This window corresponds to the lower limit of the longest among Ira Hirsh’s three‐tiered temporal processing ranges [in Sensation and Perception, edited by H. R. Moskovitz et al. (Riedel, Dordrecht, 1974), pp. 251–258]. The present study argues that a temporal window of this duration can account for a variety of auditory perceptual results requiring temporal processing, such as temporal order identification, segregation of dynamically changing streams, robust speech intelligibility, and backward masking. Results also show that this window routinely becomes longer with age, with the possibility that the increased length of the window may account for some well‐known central auditory processing deficits in aging. [Work supported by NIH, the VA Medical Research, and the 21st Century COE Progam, Kyushu University.]

Temporal Acuity and the Identification of Temporal Order: Related, but Distinct, Auditory Abilities

Nearly a half century ago, Ira Hirsh published the first of many articles establishing the difference between (A) auditory temporal acuity (the ability to distinguish two sounds by their temporal properties) and (B) the limits of the perception of the temporal order of sounds. The thresholds for both A and B are described in terms of stimulus onset asynchrony (SOA). For many sounds, A is in the order of microseconds if the two sounds are delivered dichotically, one to each ear, and reaches two to three milliseconds when both are presented to one ear. The limits of B are much greater, generally 20 milliseconds or more for pairs of sounds, and roughly the same limits are found for pairs of stimuli from more than one sensory modality: light-sound, sound-touch, light-touch. Although still not well understood, several experiments on these topics suggest that A is limited by more peripheral mechanisms of sensory processing, whereas B involves higher levels of the nervous system, where perceived temporal relations may be subject to control via mechanisms of selective attention, as in prior entry phenomena. Some evidence suggests a very broad range of SOA over which temporally correlated stimuli may be brought into registration, perhaps to enhance their mutual effects on the extraction of common information.

Temporal order identification for tone/noise stimuli with onset transitions.

Temporal order of onset identification boundaries and difference thresholds (DLs) were measured for stimuli modeled after two formant speech stimuli that varied in voice onset time (VOT). The stimuli had dynamic onset transitions and consisted of a tone pair that varied in onset relative to a noise whose center frequency matched the higher frequency tone. DLs were measured relative to 0- and 7-msec onset delays (as well as 49- and 56-msec onset delays) by using a method of constant stimuli with a two-interval temporal forced choice psychophysical procedure. Discrete thresholds were found for noise lead conditions, but tone lead conditions were very difficult for most subjects. With rising-onset stimuli, evidence was found for long DLs based upon a fixed threshold location at 32–38 msec, and thus independent of the standard stimulus. With falling-onset stimuli, the short (5- to 20-msec) DLs were roughly proportional to the standard (0- or 7-msec) onset difference, although there was evidence for an additional fixed perceptual boundary at a longer (30- to 40-msec) onset difference. A noise burst at stimulus onset seemed to act as a type of masking stimulus, causing a shift in temporal order threshold to longer onset differences. The 30- to 40-msec fixed threshold location is similar in magnitude to those typical of VOT voicing boundaries for stop consonants of English.

Release burst masking effects for temporal order identification

Nearly three decades ago, Hirsh [J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 31, 759–761 (1959)] found that the threshold for identification of temporal order of onset is significantly longer than the threshold for detection of onset asynchrony, and proposed that the order identification threshold might serve as a basis for the contrast between voiced and unvoiced aspirated stop consonants in initial position. In the last decade, a number of researchers have argued that temporal order identification threshold does not play a significant role in voicing contrast. One basis for this argument against a phonetic perception role is that the 15- to 20-ms range of typical order identification thresholds for simple stimuli are significantly shorter than VOT boundaries typical for synthetic stop consonants which include an initial release burst. The current research investigated the possible contribution of an initial noise burst analog as a masking stimulus. The initial noise burst shifts temporal order identification thresholds to significantly longer onset asynchronies which are equivalent in magnitude to VOT voicing contrast boundaries.

Mechanisms and asymmetries in visual perception of simultaneity and temporal order.

Temporally overlapping, spatially separated visual stimuli were used for studying perception of simultaneity and temporal order. Pairs of flashes each of 100 ms duration were presented with stimulus onset asynchronies of 0, 30, 50, and 70 ms. Three spatial arrangements of flash presentation were tested: both flashes were presented foveally; one flash was presented foveally and the other at 8 deg in the left visual hemifield; one flash was presented foveally and the other at 8 deg in the right visual hemifield. Onset asynchronies of 30 and 50 ms were not sufficient for correct identification of temporal order although the flashes were not perceived as simultaneous. Analysis of the response distributions suggests the existence of two-independent mechanisms for evaluating temporal interrelations: one for detecting simultaneity and the other for identifying temporal order. A better detection of simultaneity was found when synchronous flashes were presented together with pairs of flashes separated by larger onset asynchronies. Reading habits may explain only part of the left-right asymmetries of the response distributions. The possible lateralization of the two suggested mechanisms within the cerebral hemispheres is discussed.

Temporal order identification: Some parameter dependencies

Temporal order identification thresholds (TOT) for auditory stimuli have long been believed to be independent of the parameters of the stimuli as long as the judgment of order is (apparently) based directly upon the temporal difference rather than modality-specific stimulus interactions associated with the temporal difference. We have found that TOT is a direct function of stimulus duration and, at least for longer rise times, is also a function of the rise time of the stimuli. Finally, adding a new tone to the end of the stimulus complex alters TOT only for short duration stimulus complexes. The relationship between TOT and the perception of speech stimuli contrasted in initial onset characteristics is discussed.

Discriminate acoustic cues in vowel sequence perception

In previous reports we have described the importance of smooth pitch continuities between adjacent first formants of four synthetic vowels /i,æ,a,u/for vowel temporal order identification [Kerivan and Alfonso, J. Acoust. Soc. Am. Suppl. 1 66, S86 (1979)]. In a followup study we asked trained listeners to discriminate vowel sequences which contained differences along the following physical parameters: (1) vowel permuted order, (2) vowel and intervowel durations ranging from 15–120 ms, and (3) pitch or loudness fundamental frequency contours, natural versus flat. Using a variable standard the task was to decide whether a “comparison” sequence was in any way different from a “standard” sequence. Preliminary results indicate that listeners can reliably discriminate (d′ = 1.0) natural from flat pitch contours of vowels in sequence at vowel durations as brief as 30 ms. They can also discriminate placement of a 15 or 30 ms intervowel duration in a given sequence at similar performance levels. Vowel permuted order effects were minimal, a finding that sharply contrasts with identification of vowels in sequence. The temporal processing capabilities of trained listeners appear sufficient to discriminate dynamic ms-level changes in pitch, loudness and duration cues of very brief vowel spectra. [Work partially supported by an NINCDS NIH grant awarded to Haskins Laboratories and the University of Connecticut Research Foundation].

TOT: An acoustic CV syllable temporal onset analog?

Temporal order identification threshold (TOT) exhibits some similarities to the labeling boundary for several types of CV syllables varying along temporal onset continua. These continuum involve very roughly a 30‐ms onset asynchronies and exhibit selective adaptation. Like the speech continuum, TOT for tones is not fixed, but is a continuous function of the total stimulus duration [R. Pastore, L. Harris, and J. Kaplan. J. Acoust. Soc. Am. 67, S7 (1980)]. If TOT exhibits other characteristics similar to initial speech boundaries, then the various types of continua may have a common basis. However, if the continua exhibit different characteristics, then either only some of the underlying processes are common to the perception of the continua or the perception of the two continua only seem similar under certain conditions. This latter finding would have major implications for infant and nonhuman research which demonstrate behaviorally measured perceptual discontinuities with approximately 20‐ms VOT onset asy...

Temporal order identification thresholds: Some parameter dependencies

Temporal order identification thresholds (TOT) for sinusoidal stimuli were measured under a variety of conditions with practiced observers using a Levitt up-down adaptive procedure. TOT was not altered by contralateral timing cues which had previously been found to be effective in counteracting backward masking. However, TOT was found to be a function of the duration of the temporally simultaneous portion of the two stimuli prior to their simultaneous offset. Average thresholds ranged from 5.7 ms for the shorter stimulus duration of 10 ms (i.e., the stimuli were 15.7 and 10.0 ms with simultaneous offset) to 23.1 ms for the shorter stimulus duration of 300 ms. This dependency is in contrast with the typical finding of a constant 17 ms TOT independent of the stimulus parameters. The nature of stimulus uncertainty in TOT will be discussed.

Identification of temporal order in vowel sequences

The effects of element speed and element pitch contour were studied for synthetic vowels /i, æ, a, u/ in various permuted sequences. Four trained subjects were asked to identify temporal order in this closed response vowel set. A high-level stimulus uncertainty procedure was used. Subjects were near perfect performance at element durations ranging from 90–150 ms. They were above d′ = 1.0 level at 30 ms per element and d′ = 2.0 at 60 ms per element. Performance on individual sequence permutations varied little at 90–150 ms per element but varied between chance and slightly above d′ = 2.0 at both 30 and 60 ms per element. The effect of normalizing element pitch contours was negligible for individual sequence permutations at all element speeds. The duration threshold of vowel sequence identifiability (125–200 ms per element) reported by other investigators using a recycling presentation format is considerably longer than these 30–60 ms per element thresholds. A more sensitive approach to determine absolute duration thresholds for vowel sequences appears to be with trained subjects using a single sequence versus a recycling sequence method.

Pattern discrimination of tone and tone/glide sequences

In a previous study we observed that identification of temporal order in computer‐generated pure‐tone sequences was better than that for tones and glides in sequence [J. E. Kerivan and B. Carey, Percept. Psychophys. 20, 489–492 (1976)]. In continuation, the present experiment studied discrimination performance for pure tone sequences and again for tone/glide sequences. Twenty Ss made same/different comparisons of the order of events ranging from 20 to 60 msec. In one condition pure tones at 713, 1031, 1209, and 1514 Hz were used. In another, two unidirectional glissandi chosen from 466–712 Hz, 714–1208 Hz, and their mirror reversals were substituted for 1031 and 1514 Hz. Discrimination performance was significantly better in the tone/glide condition. It was slightly better for the longer event durations. In each pattern, event position No. 4 was the most important cue in the more difficult discriminations. Thus, when same/different discriminations are made on four event pure tone sequences event position, rate, frequency, and temporal continuities should be evaluated.