Project Summary/Abstract
Hearing and listening are critical to how adolescents communicate, learn new information,
and engage with technology and culture; however, performance on auditory perceptual tasks
takes a long time to become mature. Because few studies of auditory perception have centered
on typically-developing adolescents, little is known about the mechanisms underlying this
immaturity. The lack of knowledge of the processes underlying the prolonged maturation of
hearing and listening abilities in typical listeners can lead to difficulties in the diagnosis of auditory
processing disorders and other communication disorders, thus affecting public health. The long-
term goal of this project is to elucidate the mechanisms underlying the development of auditory
perception during adolescence. The present objective is to evaluate the extent to which auditory
stimulus encoding and various cognitive processes contribute to immature auditory perception
during adolescence. The central hypothesis is that immature performance on auditory and speech
perception tasks during adolescence can be attributed to both maturational changes in temporal
encoding and to developmental improvements in the specific cognitive processes required by
each task. This hypothesis will be tested by pursuing two specific aims: (1) Evaluate the
contribution of auditory temporal processing and cognitive functions to immature naïve
performance on basic auditory tasks during adolescence. (2) Evaluate the contribution of auditory
temporal processing and cognitive functions to naïve performance on speech perception tasks
during adolescence. These aims will be addressed using a combination of perceptual testing,
pupillometry and blink-rate to index cognitive processes engaged during active listening, auditory
evoked potentials to index temporal and spectral encoding during unattended stimulus
presentations, and standardized neuropsychological and language tests to evaluate processes
with known maturational courses. This project will yield experimental protocols that will be
applicable for the development of diagnostic tests regarding auditory processing in adolescents
and young adults. It also could inform future therapies that aim to support or improve the
processes underlying auditory perception in adolescents and young adults with communication
disorders.