Prosody perception in hearing loss (Karimi-Boroujeni et al., 2023)

Purpose: Prosody perception is an essential component of speech communication and social interaction through which both linguistic and emotional information are conveyed. Considering the importance of the auditory system in processing prosody-related acoustic features, the aim of this review article is to review the effects of hearing impairment on prosody perception in children and adults. It also assesses the performance of hearing assistive devices in restoring prosodic perception.
Method: Following a comprehensive online database search, two lines of inquiry were targeted. The first summarizes recent attempts toward determining the effects of hearing loss and interacting factors such as age and cognitive resources on prosody perception. The second analyzes studies reporting beneficial or detrimental impacts of hearing aids, cochlear implants, and bimodal stimulation on prosodic abilities in people with hearing loss.
Results: The reviewed studies indicate that hearing-impaired individuals vary widely in perceiving affective and linguistic prosody, depending on factors such as hearing loss severity, chronological age, and cognitive status. In addition, most of the emerging information points to limitations of hearing assistive devices in processing and transmitting the acoustic features of prosody.
Conclusions: The existing literature is incomplete in several respects, including the lack of a consensus on how and to what extent hearing prostheses affect prosody perception, especially the linguistic function of prosody, and a gap in assessing prosody under challenging listening situations such as noise. This review article proposes directions that future research could follow to provide a better understanding of prosody processing in those with hearing impairment, which may help health care professionals and designers of assistive technology to develop innovative diagnostic and rehabilitation tools.
Supplemental Material S1. Features of the assessment tools evaluating prosody perception.
Supplemental Material S2. Summary of studies focused on prosody perception in hearing aid and cochlear implant users.
Karimi-Boroujeni, M., Dajani, H. R., & Giguère, C. (2023). Perception of prosody in hearing-impaired individuals and users of hearing assistive devices: An overview of recent advances. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 66(2), 775–789. https://doi.org/10.1044/2022_JSLHR-22-00125

目的：语调感知是语音通信及社交互动中不可或缺的组成部分，通过此过程传达了语言和情感信息。鉴于听觉系统在处理与语调相关的声学特征中的重要性，本综述文章旨在回顾听力损害对儿童及成人语调感知的影响。同时，本文亦评估了助听设备在恢复语调感知方面的性能。
方法：通过全面在线数据库搜索，本综述聚焦于两条研究线索。第一条线索总结了近年来确定听力损失及其相互作用因素（如年龄和认知资源）对语调感知影响的研究尝试。第二条线索分析了报告助听器、人工耳蜗植入和双模刺激对听力损失人群语调能力有益或有害影响的研究。
结果：所回顾的研究表明，听力障碍个体在感知情感和语言语调方面存在显著差异，这取决于听力损失程度、实际年龄和认知状况等因素。此外，大部分新出现的证据指向助听设备在处理和传递语调声学特征方面的局限性。
结论：现有文献在多个方面尚不完善，包括关于听力植入物如何以及到何种程度影响语调感知尚未达成共识，以及评估噪声等挑战性听力情境下语调感知的空白。本文综述提出了未来研究可能遵循的方向，以增进对听力障碍者语调处理机制的理解，这或许有助于医疗保健专业人士和辅助技术设计师开发创新的诊断和康复工具。
补充材料 S1：评估语调感知评估工具的特征。
补充材料 S2：聚焦于助听器和人工耳蜗植入用户语调感知研究概述。
Karimi-Boroujeni, M., Dajani, H. R., & Giguère, C. (2023). 听力障碍个体及助听设备使用者语调感知：近期进展概述。言语、语言与听力研究杂志，66(2)，775–789。https://doi.org/10.1044/2022_JSLHR-22-00125