Aging Effects on Listening Effort with Cochlear Implant Simulation Practice
The results of this study will improve our understanding of aging effects on auditory training benefits, which could inform treatment plans for management of hearing loss.
Project is Not Currently Available
This project has reached full capacity for the current term. Please check back next semester for updates.
Project description
A cochlear implant is an auditory prosthesis used as an option for management of hearing loss. This prosthesis improves audibility of sound but provides a degraded signal to the auditory system. Degraded auditory information leads to effortful listening, requiring greater mental resources to understand speech. We expect practice listening to degraded speech to reduce the mental resources dedicated to listening, but older adults with hearing loss have shown the opposite. This project tests the hypothesis that aging reduces listening effort benefits of auditory practice. Students will collect behavioral responses and pupil size measurements as an index of listening effort while younger and older adult participants listen to cochlear implant simulations. The results of this study will improve our understanding of aging effects on auditory training benefits, which could inform treatment plans for management of hearing loss.
Project outcome
Students will be introduced to literature review, experimental design, data collection with younger and older adult research participants, and data analysis by taking part in this research project. Students will also gain skills in hearing assessment, which will be useful for students planning to pursue clinical degrees, and will build communication skills for sharing their results with a scientific audience. This hands-on research experience will culminate in a research presentation at a national scientific conference and a Mentored Research Digital Badge. Students will also be encouraged to contribute to a research publication.
Project details
| Length of commitment | Year-long |
| Start time | Spring |
| In-person, remote, or hybrid? | In-person |
| Level of collaboration | Small group project (2-3 students) |
| Benefits | Stipend |
| Who is eligible | All undergraduate students |
Project mentor
Kristina Milvae
Assistant Professor
Communicative Disorders and Sciences
Phone: (716) 829-5315
Email: klmilvae@buffalo.edu
Start the project
- Email the project mentor using the contact information above to express your interest and get approval to work on the project. (Here are helpful tips on how to contact a project mentor.)
- After you receive approval from the mentor to start this project, click the button to start the digital badge. (Learn more about ELN's digital badge options.)
Preparation activities
Once you begin the digital badge series, you will have access to all the necessary activities and instructions. Your mentor has indicated they would like you to also complete the specific preparation activities below. Please reference this when you get to Step 2 of the Preparation Phase.
Completing a literature review of journal articles examining listening effort with auditory training.
Keywords
communicative disorders, cochlear implants, aging, hearing, pupillometry, CDS, speech