Predicting How Real-World Noise Affects Speech Understanding
Official title: CRCNS: Predictive Models of Human Speech Recognition in Natural Environmental Noise
Funded at University of Connecticut Storrs · NIH-11411403 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Aims to improve our understanding of how people, especially older adults and those with hearing loss, understand speech in everyday noisy environments by using advanced models of natural background sounds.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Connecticut Storrs NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Storrs-Mansfield, United States) |
| Project start | September 1, 2025 |
| Project end | August 31, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $323,302 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DC023478-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11411403 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults, especially older individuals or people with hearing loss, who struggle to understand speech in noisy settings.
✕Less likely to help
People without hearing difficulties or those not exposed to noisy environments are less likely to benefit.
What this research studies
This project studies how background noises like wind, rain, traffic, or crowds affect the ability to understand speech in real life. Researchers will use a biologically grounded model to generate and control realistic background sounds and test how they disrupt phonetic, lexical, and segmental processing in listening tasks. Through behavioral testing across different noise types, the study seeks to identify which acoustic features most interfere with speech comprehension. The work could help design better hearing devices and listening strategies tailored to real-world settings.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Findings could lead to improved hearing aids and assistive listening techniques that work better in everyday noisy environments.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work shows that background sound structure can influence speech perception, but this project advances understanding with naturalistic textures and targeted behavioral tests.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Connecticut Storrs
Storrs-Mansfield, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Escabi, Monty a — University of Connecticut Storrs
- Study coordinator: Escabi, Monty a
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Silent speech interface using a wearable tongue tracker to help people after laryngectomy communicate
A wearable system with tongue sensors and intraoral components aims to let people without a vocal cord use natural-sounding speech in daily life.
-
Overlap between how we speak and how we hold words in memory
A Duke-led project studies how the brain that talks relates to keeping verbal information in working memory, using advanced brain recordings from patients already undergoing medical care.
-
AI-powered system to improve teamwork in cardiac surgery
A research project is testing an AI-driven system that listens to team conversations during heart surgeries to spot teamwork patterns and give real-time feedback to improve patient safety.
-
Caregiver Speech and Infant Brain Development in Siblings of Children with Autism
This project follows babies who have an older sibling with autism to explore how caregiver talk and everyday interactions relate to early brain and behavior development.
-
How speech and swallowing work in people with Down syndrome
Researchers will look at how differences in the mouth, throat, and brain affect speech clarity and safe swallowing in children and adults with Down syndrome.
-
Information and social media use for autism info in young children
A research project looks at how speech-language pathologists and parents of young autistic children use social media for information and what makes that information trustworthy.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.