The Hidden Cost Of Hearing: Listening Condition, Semantic Context, And Individual Factors As Predictors Of Listening Effort In Older Adults

Speech perception becomes increasingly demanding with age, even among individuals with clinically normal hearing thresholds. Older adults report increased listening effort in adverse conditions, however, the interplay among listening condition, semantic context, and listening effort remains insufficiently studied, particularly using objective physiological measures such as pupillometry. The present study examines how listening condition (quiet vs. noise), semantic context level (single words, low-predictability sentences, and high-predictability sentences), and individual factors such as cognitive abilities may affect listening effort in older native Arabic speakers.

Twenty-four adults (aged 50–70) with normal hearing thresholds completed speech recognition tasks in Arabic under quiet and noisy conditions, using single words and sentences varying in predictability (high vs. low). Listening effort was measured via pupillometry. Perceptual accuracy was also assessed. Cognitive measures were also included as individual predictors.

Regarding perceptual performance, accuracy was higher in quiet than noise, and higher for sentences than single words, with this benefit more pronounced in noise. Within the sentences-level, higher accuracy was obserevd for high- than low-predictability sentences in noise, reflecting older adults` reliance on top-down semantic processing. Regarding listening effort, greater effort (indexed by larger pupil dilation) was observed in noise than in quiet. These effects will be also discussed by individual differences in cognitive abilities.