Developmental Effects in the “Vocale Rapide dans le Bruit” Speech-in-Noise Identification Test: Reference Performances of Normal-Hearing Children and Adolescents

Abstract

Purpose: The main objective of this study was to assess the existence of developmental effects on the performance of the Vocale Rapide dans le Bruit (VRB) speech-in-noise (SIN) identification test that was recently developed for the French language and to collect reference scores for children and adolescents. Method: Seventy-two native French speakers, aged 10–20 years, participated in the study. Each participant listened and repeated four lists of eight sentences, each containing three key words to be scored. The sentences were presented in free field at different signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) using a four-talker babble noise. The SNR yielding 50% of correct repetitions of key words (SNR 50 ) was recorded for each list. Results: A strong relationship between age and SNR 50 was found, better performance occurring with increasing age (average drop in SNR 50 per year: 0.34 dB). Large differences (Cohen's d ≥ 1.2) were observed between the SNR 50 achieved by 10- to 13-year-old participants and those of adults. For participants aged 14–15 years, the difference fell just above the 5% level of significance. No effects of hearing thresholds or level of education were observed. Conclusions: The study confirms the existence of developmental effects on SIN identification performance as measured using the VRB test and provides reference data for taking into account these effects during clinical practice. Explanations as to why age effects perdure during adolescence are discussed.