Reliability and Validity of Infant Speech-Sound Discrimination-in-Noise Thresholds

1991 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 643-650 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert J. Nozza ◽  
Sandra L. Miller ◽  
Reva N. F. Rossman ◽  
Linda C. Bond
Keyword(s):  
Speech Sound ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Speech Discrimination ◽  
Threshold Procedure ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Infant Speech ◽  
Sound Discrimination ◽  
Db Difference ◽  
Test Retest Reliability

Infants were tested on a speech-sound discrimination-in-noise task using the visual reinforcement infant speech discrimination (VRISD) procedure with an adaptive (up-down) threshold protocol. An adult control group was tested using the same stimuli and apparatus. The speech sounds were synthetic /ba/ and /ga/. The masker was band-passed noise presented continuously at 48 dB SPL. Test-retest reliability was good for both groups, although test-retest differences were smaller for adults. For infants the mean of the absolute values of the differences between tests was only 5.2 dB, and there was less than a 10-dB difference between the two tests of 14 (87.5%) of the 16 infants completing the study. The infant-adult difference in discrimination threshold in noise was 6.9 dB, which agrees well with detection-in-noise thresholds from earlier studies and with discrimination-in-noise thresholds obtained on a subset of subjects in our earlier work. Advantages of the adaptive threshold procedure and its possible applications both in research studies and in the clinic are discussed.

scholarly journals Reliability and validity of a Mediterranean diet and culinary index (MediCul) tool in an older population with mild cognitive impairment

2018 ◽  
Vol 120 (10) ◽  
pp. 1189-1200 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sue Radd-Vagenas ◽  
Maria A. Fiatarone Singh ◽  
Michael Inskip ◽  
Yorgi Mavros ◽  
Nicola Gates ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Mild Cognitive Impairment ◽  
Mediterranean Diet ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Community Dwelling ◽  
Systematic Bias ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Retest Reliability ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Test Retest Reliability

AbstractDementia is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality without pharmacologic prevention or cure. Mounting evidence suggests that adherence to a Mediterranean dietary pattern may slow cognitive decline, and is important to characterise in at-risk cohorts. Thus, we determined the reliability and validity of the Mediterranean Diet and Culinary Index (MediCul), a new tool, among community-dwelling individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). A total of sixty-eight participants (66 % female) aged 75·9 (sd 6·6) years, from the Study of Mental and Resistance Training study MCI cohort, completed the fifty-item MediCul at two time points, followed by a 3-d food record (FR). MediCul test–retest reliability was assessed using intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC), Bland–Altman plots and κ agreement within seventeen dietary element categories. Validity was assessed against the FR using the Bland–Altman method and nutrient trends across MediCul score tertiles. The mean MediCul score was 54·6/100·0, with few participants reaching thresholds for key Mediterranean foods. MediCul had very good test–retest reliability (ICC=0·93, 95 % CI 0·884, 0·954, P<0·0001) with fair-to-almost-perfect agreement for classifying elements within the same category. Validity was moderate with no systematic bias between methods of measurement, according to the regression coefficient (y=−2·30+0·17x) (95 % CI −0·027, 0·358; P=0·091). MediCul over-estimated the mean FR score by 6 %, with limits of agreement being under- and over-estimated by 11 and 23 %, respectively. Nutrient trends were significantly associated with increased MediCul scoring, consistent with a Mediterranean pattern. MediCul provides reliable and moderately valid information about Mediterranean diet adherence among older individuals with MCI, with potential application in future studies assessing relationships between diet and cognitive function.

Relationship between Two Nontraditional Procedures for Assessing Speech-Sound Discrimination

1989 ◽  
Vol 69 (2) ◽  
pp. 499-503 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas G. Bountress ◽  
Joseph C. Sever ◽  
Joyce T. Williams
Keyword(s):  
Special Educators ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Reading Specialists ◽  
Standard English ◽  
Speech Sounds ◽  
Aged Population ◽  
The Past ◽  
Sound Discrimination

Tests of speech-sound discrimination are used by special educators, reading specialists and speech-language pathologists in assessing children's ability to differentiate between speech sounds occurring in standard English. Such tests are important in determining if speech-sound articulation errors are caused by difficulty in making such differentiations. However, during the past 10 years, these tests have been criticized on the basis of their reliability and validity. The purpose of this study was to examine the use of two alternative methods of assessing speech-sound discrimination with a school-aged population to determine if they elicited responses in a similar manner.

scholarly journals Repeated Parental Singing During Kangaroo Care Improved Neural Processing of Speech Sound Changes in Preterm Infants at Term Age

2021 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaisamari Kostilainen ◽  
Eino Partanen ◽  
Kaija Mikkola ◽  
Valtteri Wikström ◽  
Satu Pakarinen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Preterm Infants ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Intervention Group ◽  
Oddball Paradigm ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Speech Sounds ◽  
Emotional Speech ◽  
Kangaroo Care ◽  
Sound Changes ◽  
Sound Discrimination

Preterm birth carries a risk for adverse neurodevelopment. Cognitive dysfunctions, such as language disorders may manifest as atypical sound discrimination already in early infancy. As infant-directed singing has been shown to enhance language acquisition in infants, we examined whether parental singing during skin-to-skin care (kangaroo care) improves speech sound discrimination in preterm infants. Forty-five preterm infants born between 26 and 33 gestational weeks (GW) and their parents participated in this cluster-randomized controlled trial (ClinicalTrials ID IRB00003181SK). In both groups, parents conducted kangaroo care during 33–40 GW. In the singing intervention group (n = 24), a certified music therapist guided parents to sing or hum during daily kangaroo care. In the control group (n = 21), parents conducted standard kangaroo care and were not instructed to use their voices. Parents in both groups reported the duration of daily intervention. Auditory event-related potentials were recorded with electroencephalogram at term age using a multi-feature paradigm consisting of phonetic and emotional speech sound changes and a one-deviant oddball paradigm with pure tones. In the multi-feature paradigm, prominent mismatch responses (MMR) were elicited to the emotional sounds and many of the phonetic deviants in the singing intervention group and in the control group to some of the emotional and phonetic deviants. A group difference was found as the MMRs were larger in the singing intervention group, mainly due to larger MMRs being elicited to the emotional sounds, especially in females. The overall duration of the singing intervention (range 15–63 days) was positively associated with the MMR amplitudes for both phonetic and emotional stimuli in both sexes, unlike the daily singing time (range 8–120 min/day). In the oddball paradigm, MMRs for the non-speech sounds were elicited in both groups and no group differences nor connections between the singing time and the response amplitudes were found. These results imply that repeated parental singing during kangaroo care improved auditory discrimination of phonetic and emotional speech sounds in preterm infants at term age. Regular singing routines can be recommended for parents to promote the development of the auditory system and auditory processing of speech sounds in preterm infants.

Developmental Changes in Speech Discrimination in Infants

1977 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 766-780 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca E. Eilers ◽  
Wesley R. Wilson ◽  
John M. Moore
Keyword(s):  
Speech Sound ◽  
High Amplitude ◽  
Developmental Changes ◽  
Acoustic Cues ◽  
Speech Discrimination ◽  
New Paradigm ◽  
Discriminatory Ability ◽  
Infant Speech

A visually reinforced infant speech discrimination (VRISD) paradigm is described and evaluated. Infants at two ages were tested with the new paradigm on the following speech contrasts: [sa] vs [va], [sa] vs [∫a], [sa] vs [za], [as] vs [a:z], [a:s], vs [a:z], [at] vs [a:d], [a:t] vs [a:d], [at] vs [a:t], [fa] vs [θa], and [fi] vs [θi]. The data reported are compared with data on the same speech contrasts obtained from three month olds in a high-amplitude sucking paradigm. Evidence suggesting developmental changes in speech-sound discriminatory ability is reported. Results are interpreted in light of salience of available acoustic cues and in terms of new methodological advances.

scholarly journals Cognitive and Linguistic Sources of Variance in 2-Year-Olds' Speech-Sound Discrimination: A Preliminary Investigation

2014 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
pp. 308-326 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaylah Lalonde ◽  
Rachael Frush Holt
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Preliminary Investigation ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Discrimination Performance ◽  
Parent Report ◽  
Receptive Vocabulary ◽  
Speech Discrimination ◽  
Current Experiment ◽  
Perceptual Representations ◽  
Sound Discrimination

Purpose This preliminary investigation explored potential cognitive and linguistic sources of variance in 2-year-olds' speech-sound discrimination by using the toddler change/no-change procedure and examined whether modifications would result in a procedure that can be used consistently with younger 2-year-olds. Method Twenty typically developing 2-year-olds completed the newly modified toddler change/no-change procedure. Behavioral tests and parent report questionnaires were used to measure several cognitive and linguistic constructs. Stepwise linear regression was used to relate discrimination sensitivity to the cognitive and linguistic measures. In addition, discrimination results from the current experiment were compared with those from 2-year-old children tested in a previous experiment. Results Receptive vocabulary and working memory explained 56.6% of variance in discrimination performance. Performance was not different on the modified toddler change/no-change procedure used in the current experiment from in a previous investigation, which used the original version of the procedure. Conclusions The relationship between speech discrimination and receptive vocabulary and working memory provides further evidence that the procedure is sensitive to the strength of perceptual representations. The role for working memory might also suggest that there are specific subject-related, nonsensory factors limiting the applicability of the procedure to children who have not reached the necessary levels of cognitive and linguistic development.

Effects of Presentation Mode on Discrimination Skills of Articulatory Disordered Children

1987 ◽  
Vol 64 (3) ◽  
pp. 775-779
Author(s):  
Lori A. Powers ◽  
Charles L. Madison
Keyword(s):  
Speech Production ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Presentation Mode ◽  
Kindergarten Children ◽  
Auditory Presentation ◽  
Speech Discrimination ◽  
Experimental Conditions ◽  
Sound Discrimination ◽  
Stimulation Of

The speech-sound discrimination of 30 kindergarten children with problems in speech production and speech discrimination was examined under one of three experimental conditions, auditory, bimodal, and bimodal instructed. Children's discrimination skills in the bimodal-instructed group were superior to those of bimodal- and auditory-presentation groups. Stimulation of both the auditory and visual channels improved the discrimination scores over those achieved using the auditory channel alone.

Reliability and Validity of a Reactive Agility Test for Australian Football

2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 239-248 ◽  
Author(s):  
James P. Veale ◽  
Alan J. Pearce ◽  
John S. Carlson
Keyword(s):  
Construct Validity ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Nonparametric Tests ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Reactive Component ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Reactive Agility ◽  
Australian Football ◽  
Discriminant Analyses ◽  
Test Retest Reliability

Purpose:The aim of this study was to test the reliability and construct validity of a reactive agility test (RAT), designed for Australian Football (AF).Methods:Study I tested the reliability of the RAT, with 20 elite junior AF players (17.44 ± 0.55 y) completing the test on two occasions separated by 1 wk. Study II tested its construct validity by comparing the performance of 60 participants (16.60 ± 0.50 y) spread over three aged-matched population groups: 20 athletes participating in a State Under-18 AF league who had represented their state at national competitions (elite), 20 athletes participating in the same league who had not represented their state (subelite), and 20 healthy males who did not play AF (controls).Results:Test-retest reliability reported a strong correlation (0.91), with no significant difference (P = .22) between the mean results (1.74 ± 0.07 s and 1.76 ± 0.07 s) obtained (split 2+3). Nonparametric tests (Kruskal-Wallis and Mann-Whitney) revealed both AF groups performed significantly faster on all measures than the control group (ranging from P = .001 to .005), with significant differences also reported between the two AF groups (ranging from P = .001 to .046). Stepwise discriminant analyses found total time discriminated between the groups, correctly classifying 75% of the participants.Conclusions:The RAT used within this study demonstrates evidence of reliability and construct validity. It further suggests the ability of a reactive component within agility test designs to discriminate among athletes of different competition levels, highlighting its importance within training activities.

scholarly journals Neural mechanisms underlying speech perception in children with speech sound disorders

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alycia Erin Cummings ◽  
Ying Wu
Keyword(s):  
Speech Production ◽  
Speech Sound ◽  
Event Related Potential ◽  
Speech Discrimination ◽  
Phonological Representations ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Speech Treatment ◽  
Pre Treatment ◽  
Sound Discrimination ◽  
Children's Speech

Purpose: The underlying mechanisms of speech sound disorder (SSD) are unknown. To examine the relationship between inaccurate phonological representations and speech production ability, neural changes that occurred in conjunction with speech treatment were measured. Method: Twenty preschool-aged children with SSD participated in a traditional speech treatment program targeting a single sound (/ɹ l ʧ θ s k/) for 19 sessions. Event-related potential (ERP) recordings were completed before and after treatment, with approximately three months between sessions. During ERP recordings, two oddball stimulus sets, each containing four consonant-vowel (CV) syllables: one standard (ba/treated sound) and three deviants (ba/treated sound, da, one other CV) were presented. ERP responses indexing speech sound encoding (auditory P1/P2) and speech sound discrimination (mismatch negativity, MMN) were measured.Results: Children’s speech discrimination responses to treated sounds shifted from a positive mismatch response (PMR) pre-treatment to a MMN response post-treatment. Pre-treatment treated sound P1/P2 latencies negatively correlated with the amount of change in speech production accuracy.Conclusions: Children’s speech discrimination responses changed from using developmentally immature neural networks pre-treatment to using more mature networks after treatment, suggesting that children’s phonological representations of treated sounds became more fine-grained and/or detailed after treatment. Interestingly, children’s pre-treatment neural responses correlated with treatment outcomes, providing initial evidence for a biomarker of speech production ability.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document