IQ affects speech perception in noisy environments, new research finds
You are in a bustling cafe with a friend, struggling to hear over the noise. It might seem like a hearing aid could solve the problem. But according to new research from the University of Washington (UW), your IQ — not just your ears — might play a critical role in how well you can listen in such noisy settings.
A peer-reviewed study published in PLOS One has found that cognitive ability is strongly linked to how people with normal hearing process speech in noisy environments. The study analyzed three groups: individuals with autism, individuals with fetal alcohol syndrome, and a neurotypical control group.
“The relationship between cognitive ability and speech-perception performance transcended diagnostic categories. That finding was consistent across all three groups,” said Bonnie Lau, research assistant professor in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the UW School of Medicine and director of auditory brain development studies.
Small-scale but significant findings
Although the study involved fewer than 50 participants, researchers emphasize that the results are consistent and warrant further investigation with larger groups.
Participants included 12 individuals with autism, 10 with fetal alcohol syndrome, and 27 age- and biological sex-matched neurotypical participants, aged 13 to 47 years. All participants had clinically normal hearing confirmed through audiology screening before taking part in a specially designed “multitalker” listening challenge.
How the listening test worked
Participants wore headphones and listened to three simultaneous speakers — one primary and two background voices. Their task was to focus on the primary speaker’s sentence and correctly select a color-number combination on a computer screen, even as the background voices gradually increased in volume.
Afterward, participants underwent standardized IQ tests, measuring verbal and nonverbal ability, as well as perceptual reasoning. Analysis revealed a clear and statistically significant correlation between IQ scores and performance in the listening challenge.
Why cognitive ability matters in listening
“Successful listening in complex environments requires segregating speech streams, suppressing competing noise, and comprehending the linguistic content,” Lau explained. “It also involves semantic understanding and social skills like recognizing gestures and facial cues — all of which place a high cognitive load on the brain.”
The findings challenge the common misconception that struggling to listen in a noisy restaurant or classroom automatically means hearing loss.
Practical implications for education and therapy
Researchers suggest that individuals with lower cognitive ability or neurodivergent conditions may benefit from supportive interventions, such as seating arrangements in classrooms, reducing background noise, or using hearing-assistive technology.
The study was a collaboration between the UW Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center, UW Autism Center, Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, and departments of bioengineering, epidemiology, pediatrics, radiology, and speech and hearing sciences at the University of Washington, along with the University of Michigan Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery.
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