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trigger impact on speech in noise discrimination

In a 2025 study, Özdeş evaluated the speech perception performance in noise of individuals with misophonia and investigated the effects of triggering sound number and symptom severity by administering the Hearing in Noise Test under two scenarios (speech-shaped noise alone and speech-shaped noise combined with a buzzing fly trigger) to 40 adults with misophonia and 40 matched controls. They found that the presence of a triggering sound significantly impaired speech perception in noise in the misophonia group compared to controls, with no between-group difference in the standard noise-only condition. Additionally, higher misophonia severity and greater number of triggers were associated with worse performance. From this they concluded that misophonia adversely affects speech perception in noise, particularly when triggering sounds are present, and that the condition influences neurophysiological functioning beyond emotional or psychological responses, with implications for understanding communication difficulties and developing therapeutic interventions (Özdeş & Yılmaz, 2025)