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Reliability and validity of temporal response function modeling in aphasia

Award Number: R21DC021497
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DEAFNESS AND OTHER COMMUNICATION DISORDERS
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 01/01/2024
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 12/31/2026

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Reliability and validity of temporal response function modeling in aphasia - PROJECT SUMMARY In stroke-induced aphasia, deficits in auditory comprehension are prevalent, which has negative consequences for everyday communication and quality of life, as well as speech-language assessment and treatment. Auditory comprehension is not a monolithic process, but rather relies on processing multidimensional acoustic and linguistic cues contained in spoken language. There are few clinical tools available for identifying level(s) of auditory comprehension deficit(s) in aphasia, with typical assessments limited to single words and sentences. While such assessments may allow for precise identification of where deficits exist, they lack ecological validity. Moreover, these tasks require overt responses which utilize cognitive resources beyond those required for auditory comprehension, impeding precise characterization of deficits. Recent computational advances allow for objective examination of neural correlates of auditory comprehension across levels of processing (e.g., spectrotemporal, lexical) using an ecologically valid task wherein individuals listen to continuous speech while electroencephalography (EEG) responses are collected, with no overt responses required. This approach, temporal response function (TRF) modeling, involves fitting a linear function to map multivariate features of the continuous speech stimulus (e.g., spectrogram, lexical frequency) onto the EEG data. The resulting TRF is used to derive a predicted EEG, and the relation between the TRF-predicted EEG and observed EEG provides a measure of the fidelity of neural processing of that feature. TRF modeling has shown promise for use in clinical populations. However, researchers have yet to assess validity and test-retest reliability of TRF-derived measures of auditory comprehension in individuals with language disorders, severely limiting their clinical utility. The proposed study thus has two specific aims: to examine the validity (Aim 1) and test-retest reliability (Aim 2) of TRF-derived measures of auditory comprehension from the level of spectrotemporal processing through semantic and syntactic processing. To this end, 40 individuals with stroke- induced aphasia and 40 older adult control participants will complete a comprehensive cognitive-linguistic battery comprising tightly controlled tasks and standardized assessments designed to measure different levels of cognitive-linguistic processing. They will also listen to a continuous narrative while EEG responses are recorded at two timepoints. TRF modeling will be used to derive measures reflecting neural correlates of auditory comprehension which will be compared to performance on the cognitive-linguistic battery (Aim 1) and across the two timepoints (Aim 2). The proposed study has the potential to improve characterization of auditory comprehension in aphasia. Moreover, knowledge of normal variability across sessions for TRF-derived measures will help researchers to make informed inferences about treatment-related outcomes or spontaneous recovery so that test-retest variability is not mistakenly attributed to meaningful change.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2026 ( Subtotal = $191,947 )
2026	2026	UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON SYSTEM	4300 MARTIN LUTHER KING BLVD	HOUSTON	TX	77204	HARRIS	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	000	3	11/28/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$172,752
2026	2026	UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON SYSTEM	4300 MARTIN LUTHER KING BLVD	HOUSTON	TX	77204	HARRIS	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	001	3	2/10/2026	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$19,195
														Subtotal = $191,947

Issue Date FY: 2025 ( Subtotal = $198,356 )
2025	2025	UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON SYSTEM	4300 MARTIN LUTHER KING BLVD	HOUSTON	TX	77204	HARRIS	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	001	2	4/22/2025	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$19,835
2025	2025	UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON SYSTEM	4300 MARTIN LUTHER KING BLVD	HOUSTON	TX	77204	HARRIS	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	000	2	12/18/2024	NON-COMPETING CONTINUATION	$178,521
														Subtotal = $198,356

Issue Date FY: 2024 ( Subtotal = $181,701 )
2024	2024	UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON SYSTEM	4300 MARTIN LUTHER KING BLVD	HOUSTON	TX	77204	HARRIS	USA	Research Related to Deafness and Communication Disorders	000	1	11/27/2023	NEW	$181,701
														Subtotal = $181,701

Grand Total All Awards = $572,004

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Reliability and validity of temporal response function modeling in aphasia

Award Number: R21DC021497

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DEAFNESS AND OTHER COMMUNICATION DISORDERS

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 01/01/2024

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 12/31/2026

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