Loud Speech Research Articles

Physiological correlates of loud speech: Respiratory and intraoral pressure data

Many previous studies have investigated how increased loudness affects speech production behavior, but authors have varied widely in the measures they have used, and few studies have systematically assessed relationships among respiratory, laryngeal, and acoustic measures. In this work, we present respiratory and aerodynamic (intraoral pressure) data on eleven German-speaking women who produced speech in regular and loud conditions in three different tasks: Reading short sentences, responding to questions, and producing spontaneous speech. Loudness variation was assessed naturalistically by varying speaker-experimenter distance. Respiratory behavior was assessed using inductance plethysmography, and intraoral pressure was obtained via a pressure transducer affixed to the hard palate. In the respiratory data, we measured inspiratory magnitude as well as the slope of the inspiratory and expiratory phases. In the intraoral pressure data, we searched automatically for the peak pressure value during plosives anterior to the transducer (viz., bilabials and alveolars). These physiological data will be related to previously-presented data on speech acoustics to begin to disentangle respiratory and supraglottal contributions to the characteristics of loud speech.

The Effect of Loud Voice and Clear Speech on the Use of Vocal Fry in Women

Objective: This study investigated the effects of clear speech and loud voice on the use of vocal fry in women. Methods: Twenty healthy-voiced young women who used a moderate amount of vocal fry when reading aloud in conversational-style speech (defined as a minimum of three occurrences per sentence) also read the same stimuli in loud voice and clear speech. The occurrence of vocal fry was assessed in the three speaking styles. Intensity and fundamental frequency levels in each condition were obtained to help interpret the findings. Results: A statistically significant reduction in the use of vocal fry was found in loud and clear conditions compared to conversational style. However, a significantly greater reduction in use of vocal fry was obtained in clear speech than in loud voice. The increased intensity and mean F0 in loud and clear speech only partially explain the decrease in use of vocal fry. Conclusion: Women who use vocal fry in typical speech may persist in its use when speaking more loudly, although not when speaking more clearly. Apparently, different phonatory strategies are used for the two speaking styles. Further research is needed to clarify the laryngeal dynamics of clear speech.

Effect-for-cause inferencing in the evaluation of loudness among Toba Batak people

The paper presents evidence for an effect-for-cause inferencing process underlying the general style of using loud speech voice among Toba Batak speakers (Indonesia). A subjective reaction test was conducted to find out their perception towards the use of loud voice in three relational settings having different combinations of bipolarity: 1) vertical social distance and horizontal social distance; 2) vertical social distance only; and 3) horizontal social distance only. The results showed that in contexts where horizontal social distance remains, the absence of vertical distance significantly weakens the perception of impoliteness and unacceptability towards the use of loud voice. This indicates that Toba Bataks assume a pseudo social proximity when they are speaking to people with whom they have no horizontal social closeness. This method of inferencing is consistent with an effect-for-cause relational structure, being metonymic in nature.

The criteria for the relationship between hearing impairment and professional occupation and the criteria for professional suitability in terms of hearing among the aeronautical personnel engaged in civilian aviation

This article describes the main clinical features associated with the development and manifestations of disturbed sound perception in the members of the aeronautical personnel engaged in the Russian civilian aviation. The main expert criteria for the relationship between the diseases of the organs of hearing (as exemplified by chronic sensorineural hearing impairment) and professional occupation have been developed based on the results of the clinical and diagnostic examination with the use of whispered and loud speech acumetry, tonal threshold audiometry, speech audiometry, impedancometry and evoked optoacoustic emission. Civilian aviation sectoral approaches to the evaluation of professional suitability in terms of hearing among the aeronautical personnel are considered in accordance with the criteria adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), a specialized UN agency that sets the international standards for the civilian aviation and co-ordinates its development with the purpose of enhancing the safety and effectiveness of flights. The criteria are formulated for the solution of the expert problems arising from the relationship between the professional occupation and the diseases of the organs of hearing and for the evaluation of the professional suitability in terms of hearing among the aeronautical personnel engaged in civilian aviation.

EKG Electrode as a Tactile Locator of Stoma after Decannulation: A Pilot Study.

ObjectiveWe aimed to evaluate the use of an electrocardiogram (EKG) electrode over decannulation dressings covering the stoma to improve speech intelligibility and volume and reduce air escape by facilitating identification of the “sweet spot” of the dressing. No objective data exist for patient outcomes with use of the EKG electrode dressing.MethodsThis prospective study included head and neck oncology patients at a tertiary hospital who received a tracheostomy. A standard tracheostomy decannulation dressing was placed followed by an EKG electrode. A speech pathologist evaluated speech volume via sound-level meter and captured speech intelligibility for random sentence-level speech. A blinded reviewer scored speech samples for intelligibility. Patients completed a 4-question satisfaction survey.ResultsFour patients completed the study. Based on the survey, the patients favored the button, with the lowest scores being 8.5 out of 10. Speech understanding was 48.5% without the button and 83% with the button. Normal speech volume was 73.75 dB without the button and 77.75 dB with the button. Loud speech volume was 80.75 dB without the button and 87 dB with the button.DiscussionThis pilot study shows objective benefits of the EKG button as well as improved patient satisfaction. Inexpensive and low maintenance, the EKG electrode provides better occlusion of stoma dressing with easier localization.Implications for PracticeDissemination of our results will aim to improve quality and patient outcomes following decannulation.

The Relationship Between Speech Production and Speech Perception Deficits in Parkinson's Disease.

This study investigated the possible relationship between hypokinetic speech production and speech intensity perception in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). Participants included 14 patients with idiopathic PD and 14 matched healthy controls (HCs) with normal hearing and cognition. First, speech production was objectified through a standardized speech intelligibility assessment, acoustic analysis, and speech intensity measurements. Second, an overall estimation task and an intensity estimation task were addressed to evaluate overall speech perception and speech intensity perception, respectively. Finally, correlation analysis was performed between the speech characteristics of the overall estimation task and the corresponding acoustic analysis. The interaction between speech production and speech intensity perception was investigated by an intensity imitation task. Acoustic analysis and speech intensity measurements demonstrated significant differences in speech production between patients with PD and the HCs. A different pattern in the auditory perception of speech and speech intensity was found in the PD group. Auditory perceptual deficits may influence speech production in patients with PD. The present results suggest a disturbed auditory perception related to an automatic monitoring deficit in PD.

Acoustic modification across speaking modes in English and Korean

Previous studies have reported temporal and spectral modification of acoustic signals of speech according to varying speaking modes (i.e. clear, loud speech) in several languages (Krause & Braida, 2004; Lam & Tjaden, 2015). Interestingly, some acoustic characteristics such as vowel contrasts, inferred from the size of the corner vowel space, have been discussed to exhibit common, equivalent change between languages despite the different inventory sizes (Smiljanic & Bradlow, 2005). The current study, as an expansion of this line of research, seeks to examine the effect of native language on selected acoustic measures when speakers voluntarily switch speaking modes among conversational, clear, and slow speech. 24 female adults (12 English-speaking, 12 Korean-speaking) were asked to read CVCV structures in the three aforementioned conditions. English and Korean were chosen mainly because of their differences in vowel and stop inventories. Vowel duration, formant structure (F1-F2), and VOT were measured from ...

Noise suppression based on loudness management for hearing aid

It is well known that speech intelligibility does not improve even if SNR is improved and noise annoyance decreases by noise suppression for hearing aids, since the noise suppression decreases the level of the desired signal as well as the one of the noise. One solution for the problem is to minimize the speech distortion as much as possible even if a large quantity of residual noise exists. In this study, we propose a noise suppression algorithm based on loudness management to improve speech intelligibility for hearing aid wearer. Our algorithm not only minimizes the speech distortion but also maintains the speech loudness. In the algorithm, the speech spectrum is estimated from the observed signal first, and then the loudness of the estimated speech spectrum is calculated. Simultaneously, the loudness of the observed signal is also calculated and the gains in each frequency band are controlled in order to correspond between these two loudness. In our loudness management, even if the bands are almost filled by noise component, it is not suppressed as much as possible not to reduce barely audible speech component. As results, the noise suppressed signal with low speech distortion is obtained and speech intelligibility is improved comparing with commonly used method.

Time dose and fundamental frequency of male and female speakers in different style and reverberation times

Speakers adjust their vocal production when communicating in different room acoustics, when instructed to speak at different volumes and when experiencing vocal fatigue. The present paper reports on the effects of speech style, reverberation time, and external auditory feedback on time dose and fundamental frequency. Ten male and ten female subjects were recorded while reading a text in normal and loud styles, in three rooms—anechoic, semi-reverberant, and reverberant—and with and without acrylic glass panels at 0.5 m from the mouth, which increased external auditory feedback. Longer time doses were accumulated in more reverberant rooms, especially when loud voice was used. Higher fundamental frequency was measured in less reverberant rooms. Subjects increased their fundamental frequency in the loud speech style versus the normal style, but this effect was weaker when the level of external auditory feedback was high. A larger fundamental frequency range was detected for females than males and for the loud style than the normal style. These results contribute to understanding how the effect of room acoustics on speech changes as a function of speaking time.

Manic episode secondary to maca

IntroductionMaca (Lepidium meyenii) is a plant grown in the Andes Mountains, formerly used for nutritional purposes. Nowadays is used as a nutritional supplement and energizing.ObjectivesTo describe a case of manic episode secondary to maca consumption, as an ingredient of an energizing product.AimsTo report on antidepressant properties of maca, based on a clinical case.MethodsX. is a 27-years-old male without any psychiatric history. He came to the emergency service because of the presence of sudden onset behavioral disorders, presenting a manic-like episode of seven hours of evolution. His symptoms consisted in psychomotor restlessness, hyperactivity, insomnia, verbose and loud speech, hyperthymia, megalomaniac verbalizations, and unsuitable future plans. The patient had self-awareness of his symptoms and was self-critical with his behavior. He reported he was consuming an energizing supplement containing maca from about two weeks ago. Treatment with olanzapine 20 mg was initiated, and the patient remained under observation for 24 hours.ResultsSymptomatology subsided completely after 24 hours. The patient is discharged from the hospital with diagnosis of manic episode secondary to maca, without any treatment. He was advice to not take stimulants.ConclusionsThere are studies reporting that maca plant has antidepressant properties, associated with the activation of noradrenergic and dopaminergic systems, as well as the attenuation of oxidative stress. However, more studies are needed to identify specific compounds that produce these effects.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.

Sensorimotor Transformations Underlying Variability in Song Intensity during Drosophila Courtship

Diverse animal species, from insects to humans, utilize acoustic signals for communication. Studies of the neural basis for song or speech production have focused almost exclusively on the generation of spectral and temporal patterns, but animals can also adjust acoustic signal intensity when communicating. For example, humans naturally regulate the loudness of speech in accord with a visual estimate of receiver distance. The underlying mechanisms for this ability remain uncharacterized in any system. Here, we show that Drosophila males modulate courtship song amplitude with female distance, and we investigate each stage of the sensorimotor transformation underlying this behavior, from the detection of particular visual stimulus features and the timescales of sensory processing to the modulation of neural and muscle activity that generates song. Our results demonstrate an unanticipated level of control in insect acoustic communication and uncover novel computations and mechanisms underlying the regulation of acoustic signal intensity.

Self-perceived and Acoustic Voice Characteristics of Russian-English Bilinguals

The aim of this study was to investigate the vocal characteristics of bilingual individuals speaking in their native language as compared with the English language. The participants consisted of 30 vocally healthy adults, 14 adult male and 16 adult female bilingual subjects, with ages ranging from 23 to 70 years old. The procedures included a demographic questionnaire, a self-perceptual questionnaire, and descriptions of two video clips. The self-assessment included 21 questions that investigated how participants perceived their communication characteristics in each language. For the description of the videos, participants randomly watched two video clips with no audio support. One of the videos was described in English and the other in their native language. Voice samples were recorded to allow for acoustic analysis of selected vocal parameters: pitch, intensity, intonation, and rate of speech. The results indicate that overall, there is no difference in how the individuals perceive their communication characteristics in both languages (all P values > 0.05). The only significant difference was found in speech rate and sentence duration. Individuals had faster speech rate and longer sentences when speaking in English than in Russian. The correlation analysis showed that the younger the participants were when they immigrated to the USA, the more interjections they reported having in their native language. This study showed that language is a contributing factor to varying speech characteristics of Russian-English bilingual individuals. These findings have important implications for clinicians to be aware of cultural-linguistic influence in vocal and speech features.

Prosodic analysis of neutral, stress-modified and rhymed speech in patients with Parkinson's disease

Background and objectiveHypokinetic dysarthria (HD) is a frequent speech disorder associated with idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD). It affects all dimensions of speech production. One of the most common features of HD is dysprosody that is characterized by alterations of rhythm and speech rate, flat speech melody, and impairment of speech intensity control. Dysprosody has a detrimental impact on speech naturalness and intelligibility. MethodsThis paper deals with quantitative prosodic analysis of neutral, stress-modified and rhymed speech in patients with PD. The analysis of prosody is based on quantification of monopitch, monoloudness, and speech rate abnormalities. Experimental dataset consists of 98 patients with PD and 51 healthy speakers. For the purpose of HD identification, sequential floating feature selection algorithm and random forests classifier is used. In this paper, we also introduce a concept of permutation test applied in the field of acoustic analysis of dysarthric speech. ResultsProsodic features obtained from stress-modified reading task provided higher classification accuracies compared to the ones extracted from reading task with neutral emotion demonstrating the importance of stress in speech prosody. Features calculated from poem recitation task outperformed both reading tasks in the case of gender-undifferentiated analysis showing that rhythmical demands can in general lead to more precise identification of HD. Additionally, some gender-related patterns of dysprosody has been observed. ConclusionsThis paper confirms reduced variation of fundamental frequency in PD patients with HD. Interestingly, increased variability of speech intensity compared to healthy speakers has been detected. Regarding speech rate disturbances, our results does not report any particular pattern. We conclude further development of prosodic features quantifying the relationship between monopitch, monoloudness and speech rate disruptions in HD can have a great potential in future PD analysis.

Perception of voice difficulties by individuals with Parkinson disease vis-à-vis their family members using Voice Handicap Index

Introduction: Individuals with Parkinson disease (PD) experience difficulty in production of voice. Evidence also suggests a possible deficit in Parkinson's individuals' perception of their own speech loudness. Aim: This study aims to determine perception of voice difficulties in an individual with PD and obtain family members perspective of the same using Voice Handicap Index. Methodology: 31 individuals with PD and their respective family members (N=62) were asked to fill Voice Handicap Index. Scores across three areas: emotional, functional and physical were compared. Two-way (factorial) ANOVA statistical test was used. Results: 64% of the individual with PD and 70% of the family members felt that a voice difficulty exists. The results of ANOVA indicated that the score of the PD differed from family on overall mean scores on VHI. Also, the impact of a voice problem is more noticeable by the family member as compared to the individual with PD. The family members have perceived that the individual with PD has become more restricted in their personal lives and avoid speaking situations due to their voice difficulties. On the other hand, the individual with PD notice the physical strain, effort and difficulty to produce the voice. Conclusion: Planning a treatment, which focuses on all these aspects, allows the PD and family members to get a healthy perspective of the voice difficulties and improve overall quality of life. In a country like India, that still has a close family structure, involving the family and obtaining their perspective for management of individuals with PD is of significant importance.

Speech and language therapy for aphasia following subacute stroke.

The aim of this study was to investigate the time window, duration and intensity of optimal speech and language therapy applied to aphasic patients with subacute stroke in our hospital. The study consisted of 33 patients being hospitalized for stroke rehabilitation in our hospital with first stroke but without previous history of speech and language therapy. Sixteen sessions of impairment-based speech and language therapy were applied to the patients, 30–60 minutes per day, 2 days a week, for 8 successive weeks. Aphasia assessment in stroke patients was performed with Gülhane Aphasia Test-2 before and after treatment. Compared with before treatment, fluency of speech, listening comprehension, reading comprehension, oral motor evaluation, automatic speech, repetition and naming were improved after treatment. This suggests that 16 seesions of speech and language therapy, 30–60 minutes per day, 2 days a week, for 8 successive weeks, are effective in the treatment of aphasic patients with subacute stroke.

Classification of the Speech of Normally Developing and Intellectually Disabled Children

Development of speech is very crucial for good quality of life. People with learning disabilities face challenges in communication due to deficiencies in speech production and require interventions in terms of training and rehabilitation to become less dependent. For providing specific trainings, it will be valuable to know the exact nature of these deficiencies through acoustic analysis. This study investigated fundamental frequency and intensity in a speech of 95 subjects including 39 normal developing children, 20 adults and 36 subjects with mild to moderate intellectual disability (mental retardation). The results show significant differences in these acoustic measurements. This present study also developed a model that classify the normal developing and intellectually disable groups based on these acoustic features. The findings suggest that acoustic cues such as fundamental frequency along with intensity play a significant role in classifying the groups. It was shown that classifiers with good accuracy can be built based on these parameters which indicate differentiating capabilities of the said features. Such attempts to build classification models can also aid in early diagnosis of intellectual or learning disabilities.

THE EFFECTS OF FAMILIAR, UNFAMILIAR MUSIC AND AUDIOBOOKS EXPOSURE ON SPEECH PARAMETERS OF ELDERLY WITHALZHEIMER’S DISEASE: A WITHIN CASE STUDIES

Alzheimer’s disease is a cognitive disorder common among elderly whereby neurode generation occurs rapidly as a result of decline in brain activity. There have been many studies linking music memory with cognition among patients with Alzheimer’s disease. However, the types of music exposed, the familiarity of the music and their effects on speech production is still not adequately explained. Improvement in speech can be demonstrated in alteration of several speech parameters. This multiple case study (n = 3), seeks to investigate the effects of familiar and unfamiliar music on the speech fundamental frequency (F0), intensity range, and speech rate of 3 elderly subjects with Alzheimer’s disease. The speech parameters after exposure to familiar and unfamiliar music were measured longitudinally over a period of 21 weeks. A listening task to an audiobook was treated as control. Data revealed that in all of these subjects, there was wide variability in performance with no common pattern for familiar music. However, for unfamiliar music, two subjects showed increase in their speech rate. The third subject showed increase in F0 range. It is suggested that there may be more to understand how familiar and novel stimuli influence speech production in patients with Alzheimer’s disease. Keywords Alzheimer’s Disease (AD), Familiar, Unfamiliar, music, Speech production

Loudness of Speech Transmitted via Handsfree Telephone Systems - Perceptual Measurements and Loudness Models in Free Field Listening

Loudness of Speech Transmitted via Handsfree Telephone Systems - Perceptual Measurements and Loudness Models in Free Field Listening

Clinical evaluation of the xDP output compression strategy for cochlear implants.

Technological advances in the domain of digital signal processing adapted to cochlear implants (CI) are partially responsible for the ever-improving outcomes observed with this neural prosthesis. The goal of the present study was to evaluate audiometric outcomes with a new signal processing strategy implemented in Oticon Medical-Neurelec cochlear implant systems, the xDP strategy. The core of this approach is a preset-based back-end output compression system, modulating a multi-channel transfer function depending on the intensity and information content of input sounds. Twenty adult CI patients, matched for age and CI experience, were included in this study. Pure-tone thresholds and vocal audiometry scores were measured with their former signal processing strategy and with xDP. Speech perception was assessed using dissyllabic words presented in quiet, at different intensity levels: 40, 55, 70, and 85dB SPL, and in a cocktail party noise at a signal-to-noise ratio of +10dB. Results with the xDP strategy showed, as awaited, no major modification of pure-tone thresholds. A global increase of speech perception scores was observed after a 1-month habituation period, with significant improvements for speech perception in quiet for moderate (55dB SPL), loud speech sounds (85dB SPL), and speech-in-noise comprehension. Subjective signal quality assessment showed a preference for Crystalis(xDP) over the former strategy. These results allow the quantification of improvements provided by the xDP signal processing strategy.

Effect of concurrent walking and interlocutor distance on conversational speech intensity and rate in Parkinson's disease

Previous studies have demonstrated a negative effect of concurrent walking and talking on gait in Parkinson's disease (PD) but there is limited information about the effect of concurrent walking on speech production. The present study examined the effect of sitting, standing, and three concurrent walking tasks (slow, normal, fast) on conversational speech intensity and speech rate in fifteen individuals with hypophonia related to idiopathic Parkinson's disease (PD) and fourteen age-equivalent controls. Interlocuter (talker-to-talker) distance effects and walking speed were also examined. Concurrent walking was found to produce a significant increase in speech intensity, relative to standing and sitting, in both the control and PD groups. Faster walking produced significantly greater speech intensity than slower walking. Concurrent walking had no effect on speech rate. Concurrent walking and talking produced significant reductions in walking speed in both the control and PD groups. In general, the results of the present study indicate that concurrent walking tasks and the speed of concurrent walking can have a significant positive effect on conversational speech intensity. These positive, “energizing” effects need to be given consideration in future attempts to develop a comprehensive model of speech intensity regulation and they may have important implications for the development of new evaluation and treatment procedures for individuals with hypophonia related to PD.