Computer-based auditory skill building program for aural (re)habilitation

基于计算机的听觉技能培养计划，用于听力（康复）康复

• 批准号: 7537831
• 负责人: PAMELA ALLISON CONNORS
• 金额: $ 19.79万
• 依托单位: BIOSPEECH, INC.
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2008
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2008-09-05 至 2010-05-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/7537831
• 关键词: Acoustics; Address; Adult; Affect; Age; Americas; Auditory; Auditory Physiology; Base Sequence; Cartoons; Censuses; Child; Client; Cochlear Implants; Cochlear implant procedure; Cognitive; Collaborations; Comprehension; Computers; Condition; Custom; Data; Databases; Development; Devices; Discrimination; Early identification; Ensure; Environment; Face; Family member; Feedback; Friends; Future; Goals; Habilitation; Head; Health Sciences; Health Services Accessibility; Hearing; Hearing Impaired Persons; Home environment; Household; Housing; Image; Implant; Individual; Individual Differences; Insurance; Intention; Internet; Language; Language Development; Language Disorders; Learning; Life; Maxon; Methodology; Methods; Modification; Monitor; Names; Newborn Infant; Noise; Numbers; Oral; Oregon; Orthography; Pathologist; Performance; Phase; Phonetics; Planet Mars; Progress Reports; Public Health; Purpose; Range; Rate; Reader; Reading; Research Infrastructure; Research Personnel; Schools; Screening procedure; Self-Administered; Signal Transduction; Software Tools; Specialist; Specific qualifier value; Speech; Speech Intelligibility; Speech Sound; Stimulus; Structure; System; Talents; Testing; Text; Time; Training; United States; Universities; Visual; Vocabulary; Voice; Week; Work; auditory deprivation; base; computerized; cost; data structure; day; deafness; design; hearing impairment; implantation; improved; male; programs; prototype; regional difference; remediation; rural area; skills; sound; teacher; tool; usability

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In the past decade, two advances have made the acquisition of listening skills and intelligible speech by individuals with hearing loss more attainable. The first is universal newborn hearing screening and the second is cochlear implantation (CI). 90% of children who receive a CI before they are 18 months old attain intelligible speech. However, intensive aural (re)habilitation training is crucial for these children and other individuals who receive CI's to fully realize the benefit of a cochlear implant. Face-to-face training with a speech and language pathologist is expensive, time-consuming, and may not always be available because clients may live in rural areas where there are no specialists, or children may be placed in public schools without in-house AR specialists. There are several aural (re)habilitation tools available commercially that can be self-administered. Many of these are specifically designed for adult speakers. One tool that is available for children is the Listening Skills Tutor developed by researchers at the Center for Spoken Language Understanding (CSLU) at Oregon Health & Science University and specialists at the Tucker-Maxon Oral School. In Phase I, we will significantly expand the capabilities of this Listening Skills Tutor (LST) and evaluate its performance. The most important improvement of the LST is that it will contain adaptive computer-guided lessons for a wide variety of phoneme listening targets, allowing hearing-impaired individuals to attain listening skills without the extensive guidance of a specialist. In addition, the new system presents phoneme listening targets with improved speech (either natural or improved synthetic voice); uses image alternatives in addition to, or instead of, word alternatives; and uses a natural as opposed to a synthetic talking face. In this Phase I-STTR project we will focus on phonetic discrimination and identification skill building. In Phase II, we will expand the LST to include suprasegmental targets and global comprehension activities. Supra-segmental targets include pitch and pitch contours, amplitude, and speech rate. Global comprehension includes understanding words in conversation and will be presented in quiet and adverse listening conditions such as in noise or with competing conversations (babble). In addition, in Phase II we will build a computer-based assessment tool which will determine what specific targets users need to learn. The assessment tool will use an up-down methodology of testing (or staircase method) which determines the entry level of users based on a selective number of stimuli. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE In the United States, roughly 22,000 adults and nearly 15,000 children have received cochlear implants and these individuals need intensive auditory (re)habilitation (AR) training to fully realize the potential benefit of a cochlear implant and attain intelligible speech. Face-to-face AR training with a specialist is expensive, not always covered by insurance and not always feasible because clients may live in rural areas where there are no specialists, or children may be placed in public schools without in-house AR specialists. Therefore, a computer-guided program that allows auditory training without the help of a specialist is necessary. The proposed project will create and evaluate such a program, focusing on learning phoneme discrimination and identification. It uses natural and high-quality synthetic voices, displays choice alternatives with child- appropriate pictures, and has a natural talk-face option.

描述（由申请人提供）：在过去的十年中，两项进展使听力损失患者更容易获得听力技能和可理解的语言。第一种是新生儿听力筛查，第二种是人工耳蜗植入。在18个月大之前接受人工耳蜗植入的儿童中，90%的儿童能够获得可理解的语言。然而，强化的听觉（再）障碍训练对于这些儿童和其他接受人工耳蜗植入的人来说至关重要，以充分实现人工耳蜗植入的益处。与言语和语言病理学家进行面对面的培训是昂贵的，耗时的，并且可能并不总是可用的，因为客户可能生活在没有专家的农村地区，或者孩子可能被安置在没有内部AR专家的公立学校。有几种市售的听觉（再）抑制工具可以自我管理。其中许多是专门为成年人设计的。其中一个工具是由俄勒冈州健康与科学大学口语理解中心（CSLU）的研究人员和塔克-马克森口语学校的专家开发的听力技能导师。在第一阶段，我们将大大扩展这个听力技能导师（LST）的能力，并评估其性能。LST最重要的改进是它将包含针对各种音素听力目标的自适应计算机指导课程，使听力受损者能够在没有专家的广泛指导的情况下获得听力技能。此外，新系统呈现音素收听目标与改进的语音（自然或改进的合成语音）;使用图像替代品，除了，或代替，词的替代品;并使用一个自然的，而不是一个合成的说话的脸。在第一阶段-STTR项目中，我们将专注于语音识别和识别技能的培养。在第二阶段，我们将扩大LST，包括超音段目标和全球的理解活动。超音段目标包括音高和音高轮廓、振幅和语速。整体理解包括理解对话中的单词，并将在安静和不利的听力条件下呈现，例如在噪音或竞争性对话中（胡言乱语）。此外，在第二阶段，我们将建立一个基于计算机的评估工具，以确定用户需要学习哪些具体目标。评估工具将使用一种自上而下的测试方法（或阶梯法），根据选定的刺激数量确定用户的入门水平。在美国，大约有22，000名成年人和近15，000名儿童接受了人工耳蜗植入，这些人需要密集的听觉（再）刺激（AR）训练，以充分实现人工耳蜗植入的潜在益处并获得清晰的语音。与专家面对面的AR培训费用昂贵，并不总是由保险覆盖，也不总是可行的，因为客户可能生活在没有专家的农村地区，或者孩子可能被安置在没有内部AR专家的公立学校。因此，一个计算机引导的程序，允许听觉训练没有专家的帮助是必要的。拟议的项目将创建和评估这样一个程序，重点是学习音素的歧视和识别。它使用自然和高质量的合成声音，显示选择与儿童适当的图片，并有一个自然的谈话脸的选择。