A Moderated Mediation Model Linking Speech-in-Noise Exposure, Speech Perception in Noise Ability, Loneliness, and Depression.
Erik Jorgensen, Megan Werner, Lucas Modahl and 1 others
More time in noisy social settings was linked to lower loneliness and depression in young normal-hearing adults, but only for those with average or better speech-in-noise ability.
For those with poorer ability, the link was weaker or reversed.
Key findings
1A 10% increase in time spent in noisy settings was associated with a 6.68-point lower loneliness score for those with better SPIN ability, but only a 1.4-point decrease for those with poorer ability. The relationship reversed for the poorest performers, with the model predicting a crossover at a QuickSIN score above 3 dB.
2Higher loneliness was associated with higher depression (b = 0.19, p < .001), while the direct link between SiN time and depression was not significant (p = .70). The total association between SiN exposure and depression was also not significant (p = .471).
3The indirect pathway from SiN time to depression through loneliness was statistically significant only for QuickSIN scores between −1.50 and 1.76 dB SNR loss. At the 25th percentile the indirect association was −12.6 (95% CI [−24.4, −4.2]); at the 75th percentile it was −2.6 (95% CI [−8.7, 5.8]), which was not significant.
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How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
Cross-sectional design: the data cannot establish whether SiN exposure influences loneliness and depression, or whether mood and social withdrawal reduce SiN exposure. Recorder compliance was 76% and EMA compliance was 73%, so some waking hours were unrecorded and it is unclear whether missed time was random or systematic. SiN was defined acoustically (speech above 67.5 dBA) and may include non-social settings such as a crowded coffee shop where the person is studying. QuickSIN is a lab measure and may not reflect real-world communication success in varied noisy environments. Effect sizes were modest and confidence intervals were wide in places; the sample of 54 may limit power for small effects. All participants were normal-hearing young adults (18–26), so the findings cannot be generalised to people with hearing loss or to older adults.
Declared interests
Funded by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders and the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (R21 DC021512). No industry funding or author conflicts of interest are declared.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that spending more time in noisy settings improves mental health. The total association between SiN time and depression was not significant (p = .471), the indirect pathway was significant only for those with average or better SPIN ability, and the cross-sectional design means no causal direction can be established.
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