Year of Award
2016
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Type
Master of Science (MS)
Degree Name
Speech-Language Pathology
Department or School/College
Department of Communicative Sciences and Disorders
Committee Chair
Al Yonovitz
Commitee Members
Al Yonovitz, Catherine Off, Gregory St George
Keywords
Backward Masking, Temporal masking, Clinical test of Auditory processing disorders, stimulus type
Publisher
University of Montana
Subject Categories
Other Psychology
Abstract
Increased backward masking has been correlated with Auditory Processing Disorders (APD). An efficacious test of the backward masking function that is compatible with naïve listeners could have clinical utility in diagnosing APDs. In order to determine an appropriate probe for such a test, three 20-ms signal-types were compared for ease-of-task. Response times (RT) were taken as a proxy for ease-of-task. Seven participants used a method-of-adjustment to track threshold in the presence of a 50-ms broadband-Gausian-noise backward-masker. The signal-types yielded two comparisons: Linear rise-fall on a 1000Hz sine-wave versus a “chirp” (750 Hz-4000Hz); Linear rise-fall vs Blackman gating function on a 1000Hz sine-wave. The results suggest that signal-type is a significant factor in participant response time and hence, confidence. Moreover, the contribution of signal-type to RT is not confounded by any potential interaction terms, such as inter-stimulus interval (ISI). The signal-type that yielded the quickest RTs across all participants, ISIs, and intensity levels was the 20-ms, 1000 Hz sine-wave fitted with a trapezoidal gating function. This may be the most efficacious signal-type to serve as a probe in a clinical test of backward masking.
Recommended Citation
Sears, Robert David, "EFFICACY OF THREE BACKWARD MASKING SIGNALS" (2016). Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers. 10798.
https://scholarworks.umt.edu/etd/10798
Included in
© Copyright 2016 Robert David Sears