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How is speech reception threshold measured in an audiology test?

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In audiology, the speech reception threshold (SRT) is a clinical measure used to determine the lowest intensity level at which a person can identify and repeat speech stimuli correctly at least 50 percent of the time.1

The test is conducted using spondee words—two-syllable words with equal emphasis on each syllable, such as "railway" or "football". During the procedure, these words are presented at various intensity levels until the examiner identifies the specific level where the subject can just hear and repeat half of the words correctly.1

This threshold typically correlates closely with the average of a person's pure-tone hearing thresholds at 500, 1,000, and 2,000 Hz. To ensure accuracy, these tests are generally performed in a quiet, sound-treated room to exclude extraneous noise, though they may also be conducted against a standardized noise background to better simulate real-world listening conditions.1