Auditory Figure Ground AFG

Welcome to the Auditory Figure Ground (AFG) app! This app aims to improve an individuals ability to accurately perceive speech in the presence of background competing noise. This skill is important in situations such as a noisy classroom, busy restaurant, etc. The inability to understand speech in the presence of background noise is one of the most common auditory complaints of students who have language and learning problems.

The auditory figure ground app can be used to help an individuals ability to recognize words in the presence of competing background noise. A series of one-syllable words is presented at a selected decibel level in a selected background noise type. The user is able to select the Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR) and the type of background noise.

The SNR is basically how much louder the speaker’s voice is, above the other noises in the room. The American Speech Language Hearing Association has set the standard on acceptable classroom acoustics. According to ASHA, the SNR should be no lower than +15 decibels (which is what a child requires for intelligible comprehension; an adult requires +4 to +6 decibels). The average classroom has a SNR worse that +4 decibels!

SNR Settings:
+12 dB
+8 dB
+4 dB
0 dB
-4 dB


Background Noise Settings:
Children´s indoor playground
Elementary school children talking in lobby
Small cafe ambience
Noisy crowd walking and talking
White noise
Quiet

The individual will hear a target word and be asked to select the image that represents the target word out of a field of four images. In the event that the images are not intuitive as to what they are meant to represents, you can tap on the corner of the image to flip the card to read the written word on the back.

As an individuals speech perception improves at a particular decibel setting, it is recommended to adjust the setting to a more difficult level to continue exercising auditory processing abilities.

This app may also be very beneficial for adults who have compromised auditory processing systems due to TBI and stroke, etc.