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  • Essay / Understanding the connection between auditory perception as an individual ages

    Introduction: The general relationship between aging and hearing is one where aging over time will result in the natural loss of hair cells in your ears. This will prevent older people from hearing higher pitched noises and sounds as well as younger people (Pichora-Fuller, Mick, & Reed, 2015). According to Lustig and Olson (2014), this hearing loss is often subtle and usually causes older adults only to turn up the volume on their TV or radio. Although the deficit is considered subtle, there is nevertheless a notable difference that can be examined by comparing a group of younger individuals to older individuals. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essay Methods: Two groups of participants, one aged 18 to 22 and the other aged 65 and above, all been presented with six different tones frequencies. The Dogwhistler iPhone app was used to set frequencies ranging from 100 Hz to 16,000 Hz, with varying volumes ranging from 0 to 70 decibels. Each frequency was tested twice, once in an ascending trial and once in a descending trial. Ascending trials tested frequency starting at 0 decibels and increasing to 70 decibels. Downward trails tested frequency starting at 70 decibels, decreasing to 0 decibels. During the experiment, participants were given data sheets with an ascending and descending column for each frequency. They were asked to place a “Y” next to the decibel if they were able to detect the frequency at that volume. If they were unable to detect the sound, they were asked to place an “N”. Ascending test values ​​(in decibels) are determined between two consecutive “Y” responses. For decreasing test values ​​(in decibels), they are determined between two consecutive “N” responses. From the responses of all participants, the average values ​​of the ascending and descending trials could then be calculated. Results: After using the collected data and finding the average for the two age groups for each frequency, I was able to create a graph to show a visual difference in the two age groups. What the graph shows is that at 100 Hz, both age groups needed about 64 decibels to hear the sound. At 500 Hz there was a bit more separation. Older adults needed 43.2 decibels, but younger adults only needed 37.4 decibels. At 1,000 Hz, the average threshold for older adults was 26.6 decibels, but for younger adults it was 24.9 decibels. At 4,000 Hz, the average for older adults was 15.8 decibels and the average for younger adults was 13.1 decibels. At 8,000 Hz, older adults needed 33.8 Hz, but younger adults only needed 25.2 Hz. Finally, at 16,000 Hz, older adults needed 66.3 Hz while the youngest only needed 50.2 Hz to hear the whistle. In general, both groups had a similar threshold at 100 Hz. As frequency increases, the trend is that older people need a higher decibel to reach their threshold. At 4,000 Hz, both groups require roughly the same decibel to reach their thresholds. From that point on, the two groups split more radically. Older people need a much higher decibel to hear the frequency. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. Get a personalized essay Discussion: According to, 2015)