The effect of noise types on working memory and speech-in-noise recognition

The Ease of Language Understanding (ELU) model suggests that working memory is more engaged when speech perception is affected by signal distortion, especially in individuals with hearing impairments. While research by Oberfeld et al. (2024) found no significant relationship between working memory performance in noisy environments and speech-in-noise (SiN) understanding, the impact of noise types on the relationship between working memory and speech perception tasks is yet explored. This study aims to investigate how different types of background noise, specifically long-term speech-shaped noise (LTSSN) and multi-talker babble, influence the relationship between working memory and SiN recognition among monolingual adults. English-native monolingual adults with normal hearing will be assessed with their memory performance through digit recall tasks and speech recognition tasks in both quiet and noise across two types of noise and various signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs). Overall, significant correlations between working memory performance in noise and SiN recognition are expected with multi-talker babble demonstrating a stronger relationship than LTSSN. Findings from this research will enhance our understanding of how various types of noise affect cognitive processing during speech recognition and clarify the role of working memory in adapting to challenging listening environments.