Effects of Varying Reverberation on Music Perception for Young Normal-Hearing and Old Hearing-Impaired Listeners.
Paul N Reinhart, Pamela E Souza
PMID 29320944WHAT IT FOUND
Older adults with hearing loss did not prefer a particular reverberation time in classical music and were less sensitive to reverberation differences than young normal-hearing listeners.
Room acoustics may be less noticeable to them.
Key findings
01Older hearing-impaired listeners showed no clear preference among the tested reverberation times.
02Young normal-hearing listeners preferred a moderate reverberation time around 2.5 seconds; 1.0 seconds was preferred less than all other times except 3.5 seconds, and 3.5 seconds was preferred less than 2.5 seconds.
03Older hearing-impaired listeners were less sensitive to reverberation differences than young normal-hearing listeners, and their sensitivity improved less as the difference grew.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study used small groups: 13 and 14 listeners in Experiment 1 and 18 and 19 in Experiment 2. It tested only classical symphonic excerpts, so it may not apply to other music types. Older listeners were tested without hearing aids or frequency compensation, so results may not apply when audibility is restored. The reverberation was simulated with the music treated as one source, not as separate instruments spread across a stage. The authors say the reason for reduced sensitivity in older hearing-impaired listeners cannot be inferred from this study.
Declared interests
The supplied metadata lists N.I.H. extramural and non-U.S. government research support. No author conflict statement appears in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that older hearing-impaired listeners do not care about concert acoustics. They showed no clear preference, but the authors suggest this may reflect reduced sensitivity to reverberation differences, not indifference.