An overview of the major phenomena of the localization of sound sources by normal-hearing, hearing-impaired, and aided listeners

Akeroyd, Michael A.

Abstract

Localizing a sound source requires the auditory system to determine its direction and its distance. In general, hearing-impaired listeners do less well in experiments measuring localization performance than normal-hearing listeners, and hearing aids often exacerbate matters. This article summarizes the major experimental effects in direction (and its underlying cues of interaural time differences and interaural level differences) and distance for normal-hearing, hearing-impaired, and aided listeners. Front/back errors and the importance of self-motion are noted. The influence of vision on the localization of real-world sounds is emphasized, such as through the ventriloquist effect or the intriguing link between spatial hearing and visual attention.

Citation

Akeroyd, M. A. (2014). An overview of the major phenomena of the localization of sound sources by normal-hearing, hearing-impaired, and aided listeners. Trends in Hearing, 18, https://doi.org/10.1177/2331216514560442

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 1, 2014
• Publication Date: Dec 9, 2014
• Deposit Date: Apr 6, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 6, 2018
• Journal: Trends in Hearing
• Electronic ISSN: 2331-2165
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 18
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/2331216514560442
• Keywords: spatial hearing, hearing impairment, hearing aids, vision, evolution
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/741255
• Publisher URL: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/2331216514560442
• Related Public URLs: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/2331216514560442?url_ver=Z39.88-2003&rfr_id=ori:rid:crossref.org&rfr_dat=cr_pub%3dpubmed