The impact of hearing aid signal processing on the formant

structures of children with moderate to severe hearing loss

By S. Pratt, J. Grayhack, C. Palmer, L. Taubman, D. Sabo, and J. Hauser

The impact of hearing aid signal processing on the auditory feedback for speech of hard of hearing children was evaluated. Speech samples of six children (aged 5 – 7 years) with moderate to severe sensory hearing loss were assessed when fitted with laboratory hearing aids that were programmed to three different types of signal processing schemes. Single word productions of /bVt/ words were recorded on the day that each processing scheme was fitted, one week later and approximately two months after the fitting. The children’s perception of F2 loci also was assessed with an identification task during each test session. Formant center frequencies and transitions were measured. Substantive variability was found with all of the children, and perceptual and corresponding signal processing effects were observed with some of the children.