How Hearing Loss and Noisy Environments Affects Adult Conversations

Researchers at Boys Town National Research Hospital are studying how adults’ hearing affects the way they communicate. Our goal is to better understand how hearing loss and background noise change the way people communicate and understand speech during face-to-face conversations.

Who can participate?

Eligible participants:

• Adults ages 40 to 65 years old

• Have typical or sensorineural hearing loss in both ears

• Do not have an uncorrected vision impairment (glasses or contact users are welcome)

• Do not have colorblindness

• Native English speakers

For this study, we cannot test adults who use amplification devices.

What will participants do?

This study will take around two hours to complete.

Participants will work together in pairs to spot differences between two pictures. Sometimes the environment will be noisy. Their conversations will be recorded.

Participants will also:

• Complete a vision test

• Complete a hearing test

• Complete a brief cognitive assessment

Where will the study take place?                                           

Boys Town National Research Hospital

555 North 30th Street

Omaha, NE 68131

Compensation

Research participants will receive $20 per hour for their participation.

Questions? Contact the Audiovisual Speech Laboratory at (531) 355-6664 or avspeech@boystown.org.