Cognition and aided speech recognition in noise: Specific role for cognitive factors following nine-week experience with adjusted compression settings in hearing aids

The working memory model for Ease of Language Understanding (ELU) proposes that language understanding under taxing conditions is related to explicit cognitive capacity. We refer to this as the mismatch hypothesis, since phonological representations based on the processing of speech under established conditions may not be accessed so readily when input conditions change and a match becomes problematic. Then, cognitive capacity requirements may differ from those used for processing speech hitherto. In the present study, we tested this hypothesis by investigating the relationship between aided speech recognition in noise and cognitive capacity in experienced hearing aid users when there was either a match or mismatch between processed speech input and established phonological representations. The settings in the existing digital hearing aids of the participants were adjusted to one of two different compression settings which processed the speech signal in qualitatively different ways ("fast" or "slow"). Testing took place after a 9-week period of experience with the new setting. Speech recognition was tested under different noise conditions and with match or mismatch (i.e. alternative compression setting) manipulations of the input signal. Individual cognitive capacity was measured using a reading span test and a letter monitoring test. Reading span, a reliable measure of explicit cognitive capacity, predicted speech recognition performance under mismatch conditions when processed input was incongruent with recently established phonological representations, due to the specific hearing aid setting. Cognitive measures were not main predictors of performance under match conditions. These findings are in line with the ELU model.     

A Comparison of Two Approaches to Counselor-Free Career Exploration

This study was conducted to advance previous research in the use of computer-based, counselor-free career guidance systems instead of conventional counselor-free systems. The participants, Undergraduate college students (20 men and 20 women), were asked to rate their reactions to using the DISCOVER II microcomputer career guidance system and the Self-Directed Search. The majority of the participants preferred the DISCOVER II as a vocational exploration program.     

School and Rehabilitation Counselor Preparation: Meeting the Needs of Individuals With Disabilities

In preparing students to work with individuals with disabilities, school and rehabilitation counselor educators face a number of challenges. Highlighting the major changes that have occurred in the 10 years following Hosie's (1979) recommendations for counselor preparation, this article suggests many competencies that are required to meet these challenges and describes how they can be integrated within the applicable accreditation guidelines.     

How They View Their Role: A Survey of Counselors in Different Secondary Schools

This study investigated how counselors in differently structured secondary schools look at their functions. Differences found were examined in relationship to expectations set forth in professional guidelines.     

The Politics of Counseling: Looking Back and Forward

This article examines reasons for the counseling profession's movement away from its activist roots toward policies and agendas that are less socially engaged. Concern with individualism, struggle for public acceptance, continued reliance on narrow research interests, and increased emphasis on accreditation and credentialing are all discussed as factors contributing to the counseling profession's inability to advocate for effective social change.     

Predicting Success in Vocational Training By Using the GATB

This study examined the relationship between the General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB)and class performance of eleventh- and twelfth-grade high school students enrolled in the Current River Area Vocational School, Doniphan, Missouri. Teachers' grades were used as the dependent variable, and the nine independent variables were scores taken from the aptitude factors of the GATB. The stepwise multiple regression technique was used to determine the optimal set of predictors to be used in establishing a regression equation. The results of the project should help in counseling prospective trainees toward trade or shop areas and tentative vocational planning. If not used out of perspective, the G variable in the GATB was the best single predictor of success; the best combination of variables was the G, N, P, F, and M aptitude factors.