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Capturing Visual Attention With Perturbed Auditory Spatial Cues
| Content Provider | SAGE Publishing |
|---|---|
| Author | Valzolgher, Chiara Alzaher, Mariam Gaveau, Valérie Coudert, Aurélie Marx, Mathieu Truy, Eric Barone, Pascal Farnè, Alessandro Pavani, Francesco |
| Copyright Year | 2023 |
| Abstract | Lateralized sounds can orient visual attention, with benefits for audio-visual processing. Here, we asked to what extent perturbed auditory spatial cues—resulting from cochlear implants (CI) or unilateral hearing loss (uHL)—allow this automatic mechanism of information selection from the audio-visual environment. We used a classic paradigm from experimental psychology (capture of visual attention with sounds) to probe the integrity of audio-visual attentional orienting in 60 adults with hearing loss: bilateral CI users (N = 20), unilateral CI users (N = 20), and individuals with uHL (N = 20). For comparison, we also included a group of normal-hearing (NH, N = 20) participants, tested in binaural and monaural listening conditions (i.e., with one ear plugged). All participants also completed a sound localization task to assess spatial hearing skills. Comparable audio-visual orienting was observed in bilateral CI, uHL, and binaural NH participants. By contrast, audio-visual orienting was, on average, absent in unilateral CI users and reduced in NH listening with one ear plugged. Spatial hearing skills were better in bilateral CI, uHL, and binaural NH participants than in unilateral CI users and monaurally plugged NH listeners. In unilateral CI users, spatial hearing skills correlated with audio-visual-orienting abilities. These novel results show that audio-visual-attention orienting can be preserved in bilateral CI users and in uHL patients to a greater extent than unilateral CI users. This highlights the importance of assessing the impact of hearing loss beyond auditory difficulties alone: to capture to what extent it may enable or impede typical interactions with the multisensory environment. |
| Related Links | https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/23312165231182289?download=true |
| ISSN | 23312165 |
| Volume Number | 27 |
| Journal | Trends in Hearing (TIA) |
| e-ISSN | 23312165 |
| DOI | 10.1177/23312165231182289 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Sage Publications CA |
| Publisher Date | 2023-08-23 |
| Publisher Place | Los Angeles |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Rights Holder | © The Author(s) 2023 |
| Subject Keyword | cochlear implant spatial hearing binaural hearing unilateral hearing loss multisensory selective attention auditory cues |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
| Subject | Otorhinolaryngology Speech and Hearing |
