Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research Vol.55 764-778 June 2012. doi:10.1044/1092-4388(2011/10-0264)
© American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
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Article

The Speech Intelligibility Index and the Pure-Tone Average as Predictors of Lexical Ability in Children Fit With Hearing Aids

Derek J. Stilesa
Ruth A. Bentlera
Karla K. McGregora
a University of Iowa, Iowa City

Correspondence to Derek J. Stiles, who is now at Rush University: derek_stiles{at}rush.edu

Purpose: To determine whether a clinically obtainable measure of audibility, the aided Speech Intelligibility Index (SII; American National Standards Institute, 2007), is more sensitive than the pure-tone average (PTA) at predicting the lexical abilities of children who wear hearing aids (CHA).

Method: School-age CHA and age-matched children with normal hearing (CNH) repeated words and nonwords, learned novel words, and completed a standardized receptive vocabulary test. Analyses of covariance allowed comparison of the 2 groups. For CHA, regression analyses determined whether SII held predictive value over and beyond PTA.

Results: CHA demonstrated poorer performance than CNH on tests of word and nonword repetition and receptive vocabulary. Groups did not differ on word learning. Aided SII was a stronger predictor of word and nonword repetition and receptive vocabulary than PTA. After accounting for PTA, aided SII remained a significant predictor of nonword repetition and receptive vocabulary.

Conclusions: Despite wearing hearing aids, CHA performed more poorly on 3 of 4 lexical measures. Individual differences among CHA were predicted by aided SII. Unlike PTA, aided SII incorporates hearing aid amplification characteristics and speech-frequency weightings and may provide a more valid estimate of the child's access to and ability to learn from auditory input in real-world environments.

KEY WORDS: children, word learning, vocabulary, Speech Intelligibility Index, pure-tone average


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