Small-Scale Randomized Trial of LiSN & Learn Spatial Listening Training in Children With Listening Difficulties

Background: We assessed the efficacy of spatial listening training in children with listening difficulties (LiDs) given limited research in this area of high clinical significance. Method: Twenty children (7–11.11 years) with LiD who passed hearing and nonverbal IQ screening participated. The Evaluation of Children's Listening and Processing Skills (ECLiPS) questionnaire was used to quantify LiD. Children with LiD were randomly assigned to intervention or control. Intervention included Sound Storm spatialized listening in noise training (previously known as LiSN & Learn). Outcomes were the Bamford–Kowal–Bench Speech-in-Noise (BKB-SIN) test and the Listening in Spatialized Noise–Sentences (LiSN-S) test. Results: There was no statistically significant difference in ECLiPS standard scores between groups. Eight children in control and nine in intervention completed participation. The intervention group showed significant benefits in LiSN-S pattern and total advantage scores, and improvements in BKB-SIN. The effect size for the change in signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) scores on the BKB-SIN in the intervention group was large (Cohen's d = 1.22). The control group showed a smaller, nonsignificant change in SNR. The follow up mixed‑effects model indicated that the treatment group showed greater improvement in total advantage scores from pre‑ to posttreatment compared with the control group. Conclusions: Results provide preliminary independent evidence supporting the efficacy of Sound Storm in children with LiD. Large improvement in BKB-SIN results was not expected because the training focuses on spatialized listening noise. This indicated that benefits from Sound Storm may extend beyond spatially structured tests to other listening conditions involving multitalker babble.