Cognitive Measures and the Acceptable Noise Level

The aim of this study was to determine the relation between the acceptable noise level (ANL) and cognitive measures of auditory attention and working memory. Young adults were administered the following tests: the ANL, the Digit Span and Letter-Number Sequencing subtests of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale-Fourth Edition, the Auditory Attention subtest from the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Cognitive Abilities, the Hearing in Noise Test (HINT), and the operation span (OSPAN) test. A correlation matrix was constructed using Pearson coefficients. Twenty-four young adults aged 20-29 years with normal hearing participated in the study. No significant relationships were found among the ANL and the different cognitive tasks, nor was there a significant relation found between the ANL and the HINT. However, significant relationships were found between individual cognitive tasks. There was a significant relation found between selective attention and the most comfortable level of presentation of a story. Selective attention may be a key cognitive function in acceptance of background noise.