{"title":"Effects of Fundamental Frequency and Vocal Tract Resonance on Sentence Recognition in Noise.","authors":"Jing Yang, Xianhui Wang, Victoria Costa, Li Xu","doi":"10.1044/2025_JSLHR-24-00758","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Purpose: </strong>This study examined the effects of change in a talker's sex-related acoustic properties (fundamental frequency [<i>F</i>0] and vocal tract resonance [VTR]) on speech recognition in noise.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>The stimuli were Hearing in Noise Test sentences, with the <i>F</i>0 and VTR of the original male talker manipulated into four conditions: low <i>F</i>0 and low VTR (L<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>L<sub>VTR</sub>; i.e., the original recordings), low <i>F</i>0 and high VTR (L<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>H<sub>VTR</sub>), high <i>F</i>0 and high VTR (H<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>H<sub>VTR</sub>), and high <i>F</i>0 and low VTR (H<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>L<sub>VTR</sub>). The listeners were 42 English-speaking, normal-hearing adults (21-31 years old). The sentences mixed with speech spectrum-shaped noise at various signal-to-noise ratios (i.e., -10, -5, 0, and +5 dB) were presented to the listeners for recognition.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The results revealed no significant differences between the H<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>H<sub>VTR</sub> and L<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>L<sub>VTR</sub> conditions in sentence recognition performance and the estimated speech reception thresholds (SRTs). However, in the H<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>L<sub>VTR</sub> and L<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>H<sub>VTR</sub> conditions, the recognition performance was reduced, and the listeners showed significantly higher SRTs relative to those in the H<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>H<sub>VTR</sub> and L<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>L<sub>VTR</sub> conditions.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>These findings indicate that male and female voices with matched <i>F</i>0 and VTR (e.g., L<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>L<sub>VTR</sub> and H<sub><i>F</i>0</sub>H<sub>VTR</sub>) yield equivalent speech recognition in noise, whereas voices with mismatched <i>F</i>0 and VTR may reduce intelligibility in noisy environments.</p><p><strong>Supplemental material: </strong>https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.29052305.</p>","PeriodicalId":51254,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research","volume":" ","pages":"1-12"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-05-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1044/2025_JSLHR-24-00758","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"AUDIOLOGY & SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
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Abstract
Purpose: This study examined the effects of change in a talker's sex-related acoustic properties (fundamental frequency [F0] and vocal tract resonance [VTR]) on speech recognition in noise.
Method: The stimuli were Hearing in Noise Test sentences, with the F0 and VTR of the original male talker manipulated into four conditions: low F0 and low VTR (LF0LVTR; i.e., the original recordings), low F0 and high VTR (LF0HVTR), high F0 and high VTR (HF0HVTR), and high F0 and low VTR (HF0LVTR). The listeners were 42 English-speaking, normal-hearing adults (21-31 years old). The sentences mixed with speech spectrum-shaped noise at various signal-to-noise ratios (i.e., -10, -5, 0, and +5 dB) were presented to the listeners for recognition.
Results: The results revealed no significant differences between the HF0HVTR and LF0LVTR conditions in sentence recognition performance and the estimated speech reception thresholds (SRTs). However, in the HF0LVTR and LF0HVTR conditions, the recognition performance was reduced, and the listeners showed significantly higher SRTs relative to those in the HF0HVTR and LF0LVTR conditions.
Conclusion: These findings indicate that male and female voices with matched F0 and VTR (e.g., LF0LVTR and HF0HVTR) yield equivalent speech recognition in noise, whereas voices with mismatched F0 and VTR may reduce intelligibility in noisy environments.
期刊介绍：
Mission: JSLHR publishes peer-reviewed research and other scholarly articles on the normal and disordered processes in speech, language, hearing, and related areas such as cognition, oral-motor function, and swallowing. The journal is an international outlet for both basic research on communication processes and clinical research pertaining to screening, diagnosis, and management of communication disorders as well as the etiologies and characteristics of these disorders. JSLHR seeks to advance evidence-based practice by disseminating the results of new studies as well as providing a forum for critical reviews and meta-analyses of previously published work.
Scope: The broad field of communication sciences and disorders, including speech production and perception; anatomy and physiology of speech and voice; genetics, biomechanics, and other basic sciences pertaining to human communication; mastication and swallowing; speech disorders; voice disorders; development of speech, language, or hearing in children; normal language processes; language disorders; disorders of hearing and balance; psychoacoustics; and anatomy and physiology of hearing.
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