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Effects of Age-Related Hearing Loss and Speech-Perception-In-Noise Deficits on Social Communication: an fNIRS Grandparent-grandchild hyperscanning study
Poster Session F, Friday, October 2, 2:45 - 4:45 pm, Wangari Maathai
Xin Zhou1, Hao Huang1, Jim S.F. Lau1,2, Shangqiguo Wang3, Wai Tsz Chang4,5, Florrie F.Y. Ng1,6, Patrick C.M. Wong1,2; 1Brain and Mind Institute, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China, 2Department of Linguistics and Modern Languages, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China, 3Faculty of Education, the University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China, 4Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China, 5Institute of Human Communicative Research, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China, 6Department of Educational Psychology, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
Introduction: Age-related hearing loss (ARHL) is highly prevalent worldwide among individuals aged 65 or older. ARHL is associated with difficulties following communication in noisy environments, resulting in withdrawal from social participation. As older adults across cultures are essential for grandchild care, ARHL may affect grandparent-grandchild interactions. Meanwhile, challenges in communicating with hearing-impaired grandparents may affect children’s interest in forming bonds or their behaviors to accommodate grandparents’ needs. To quantitatively assess the effect of ARHL on grandparent-grandchild social interactions, a functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) hyperscanning was conducted. Prior hyperscanning studies, by simultaneously examining the brain activity of two or more persons to compute their inter-brain coherence (IBC) or synchrony, have revealed evidence of IBC underlying social interaction. To examine the effect of ARHL and noise exposure, grandparent-grandchild interaction was tested before and after grandparents performed a Speech-Perception-in-Noise (SPIN) task in easy and hard speech-to-noise ratio (SNR) conditions. We hypothesize that older adults with more severe ARHL would perform more poorly in the SPIN tasks and exert more effort, depleting their neural resources and resulting in compromised interaction with their grandchildren, manifested as reduced IBC, and this relation would be attenuated among children with more favorable attitudes toward their grandparents. Methods: fNIRS data have been collected from 29 older adults with ARHL (OHL), and 28 older adults with normal hearing (ONH) (mean: 71.9 years), with their grandchildren (mean: 7.6 years). The project is ongoing; more data will be presented at the conference. Older adults completed two lab visits: first for hearing and SPIN testing, and second with their grandchildren for four fNIRS hyperscanning conditions. In the first two hyperscanning conditions, grandparent-grandchild dyads played puzzles independently and then together with verbal communication. For the next two conditions, older adults first completed a SPIN task in an easy or hard SNR condition alone (in a counterbalanced order), immediately followed by a cooperative puzzle game with their grandchildren, with verbal communication. fNIRS data were collected in two regions of interest (ROIs): the left (l) and right (r) dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and temporoparietal area (TP), where evidence of increased IBC for cooperative social interaction has been robustly observed in prior studies. Additionally, children were surveyed in person about their everyday interactions with their grandparents using a Network of Relationships Inventory questionnaire. Results: The IBC between each ROI in children and older adults was computed for each hyperscanning condition, marked as ROIC-ROIO. Our preliminary results found a significant effect of hard SNR, and a significant interaction between group (ONH and OHL) and hard SNR on the IBC in the lTPC-lDLPFCO and lTPC-rTPO. Further analyses will be conducted to test our hypothesis and examine how varying levels of ARHL and SPIN abilities of older adults, and children’s attitudes would moderate grandparent-grandchild IBC. Conclusion: This study investigated the impact of ARHL on grandparent-grandchild interactions. Rooted in second-person neuroscience, our research findings will provide a new perspective on the existing literature about the impact of ARHL on everyday communication among older adults.
Topic Areas: Speech Perception,