Canadian Journal of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology

Speech-on-Speech Masking: Effect of Maskers with Different Degrees of Linguistic Information

 
Author(s) Anoop Basavanahalli Jagadeesh
Ajith Kumar Uppunda
Volume 45
Number 2
Year 2021
Page(s) 143-156
Language English
Category Research Article
Keywords Linguistic masking
Informational masking
Speech-on-speech
Listening effort
Subjective rating
Abstract The current study measured speech recognition and subjective listening effort scores while
systematically varying the amount of linguistic information in maskers. Linguistic information in the
maskers was varied by (a) increasing the number of speakers in the speech babble maskers and (b)
time-reversing them. In Experiment 1, we measured speech recognition performance (signal-tonoise
ratios required for 50% accuracy of sentences) for 16 participants. The speech (sentences)
recognition scores were obtained in 15 background conditions: speech babble maskers with 2 to 8
speakers (7 conditions), time-reversed babble maskers (7 conditions), and a speech-spectrum noise.
For Experiment 2, another 15 participants rated the effort (7-point rating scale) required to understand
sentences in the same maskers as Experiment 1. This was done at a signal-to-noise ratio of 0 dB.
Results showed that fewer speakers in the babble maskers (a) caused the greatest masking effects
and (b) required the greatest listening effort ratings. Speech babble maskers resulted in significantly
higher masking effects than reverse babble maskers only for the 2- and 3-speaker babble conditions.
However, the listening effort scores were substantially higher for the speech babble maskers than
reverse babble maskers in most of the conditions. Results suggest that both magnitudes of masking
and the listening effort scores are related to the linguistic information in the masker.

Dans la pr sente  tude, les scores de reconnaissance de stimuli verbaux et d’effort   l’ coute ont  t 
mesur s en variant syst matiquement la quantit  d’information linguistique contenue dans des bruits
masquants. L’information contenue dans les bruits masquants a  t  modifi e en (a) augmentant le nombre
d’interlocuteurs et (b) en inversant ces bruits. Dans l’exp rience 1, les scores de reconnaissance de la
parole (rapport signal-sur-bruit permettant de comprendre 50% des phrases) de 16 participants ont  t 
mesur s. Ceux-ci ont  t  obtenus dans 15 environnements bruyants : 7 bruits de verbiage qui incluaient de
2   8 interlocuteurs, ces 7 m mes bruits de verbiage invers s, de m me qu’un bruit   spectre vocal. Dans
l’exp rience 2, 15 autres participants ont not  (sur une  chelle de 7 points) l’effort qu’ils ont eu   d ployer
pour comprendre des phrases dans les m mes 15 environnements bruyants. Pour cette deuxi me
exp rience, le rapport signal-sur-bruit  tait de 0 dB. Les r sultats ont montr  qu’un bruit de verbiage qui
inclut moins d’interlocuteurs (a) cause un effet masquant plus important et (b) g n re des scores d’effort
  l’ coute plus  lev s. Les bruits de verbiage ont conduit   un effet masquant plus important que les bruits
de verbiage invers s, et ce, seulement lorsqu’ils contenaient de 2   3 interlocuteurs. Toutefois, les scores
d’effort   l’ coute  taient consid rablement plus  lev s pour les bruits de verbiage que pour les bruits de
verbiage invers s, et ce, dans la majorit  des environnements bruyants. Les r sultats sugg rent que les
scores de reconnaissance de stimuli verbaux et d’effort   l’ coute sont associ s   la quantit  d’information
linguistique contenue dans un bruit masquant.
Record ID 1279
Link https://cjslpa.ca/files/2021_CJSLPA_Vol_45/No_2/CJSLPA_Vol_45_No_2_2021_1225.pdf
 

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