# Listening 2 Faces: Improving perception of speech in noise in children with communication disorders.

> **NIH NIH R43** · SMARTY EARS, LLC · 2020 · $55,000

## Abstract

Project Summary
Speech communication in noise seems effortless because of the rapid back and forth
nature of the process. For children in particular, communication often occurs in the
presence of noise (e.g. classrooms, playgrounds and cafeterias). Children with typical
development appear to do this seamlessly, however, children with developmental
disabilities such as autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and hearing loss (HL) have
significant difficulty comprehending speech in noise, exacerbating existing social and
communication deficits and negatively impacting academic outcomes. To counter this
key deficit in speech comprehension, we will develop a prototype of an innovative
therapeutic training system to increase perceptual sensitivity to speech by using videos
of human faces producing the target speech in a specific noise type. The app will
explicitly train children with ASD and HL on interrupted noise (which has silent intervals
that allow for fragments of the target to be heard) and to attend to information from the
speaking face via videos that focus on human faces/mouths. Recent evidence indicates
that listening in interrupted noise can provide perceptual benefits, such as remapping
the auditory environment and learning to use acoustic cues. The proposed product,
Listening 2 Faces (L2F), will use adaptive training procedures that automatically
increases difficulty as performance improves, and includes customizable rewards to
maintain interest, as well as explicit reminders to attend to the speaker's face (and, in
particular, the mouth). L2F will include an app that administers training via the child's
own mobile device, and can be used by a clinician to track multiple children, or by a
caregiver to track an individual child's progress.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10045766
- **Project number:** 3R43DC017405-01A1S1
- **Recipient organization:** SMARTY EARS, LLC
- **Principal Investigator:** Barbara Fernandes
- **Activity code:** R43 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $55,000
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2019-06-01 → 2020-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10045766

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10045766, Listening 2 Faces: Improving perception of speech in noise in children with communication disorders. (3R43DC017405-01A1S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-29 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10045766. Licensed CC0.

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