The Listening Project at Reiss-Davis/Vista Del Mar Child and Family Services

A research project funded by the Reiss-Davis Child Study Center of Vista Del Mar (RDCSC/VDM) will be conducted on the Vista Del Mar campus of the RDCSC/VDM to evaluate the effectiveness of the Listening Project Protocol (LPP) in children who have difficulties with autonomic and behavior regulation in the classroom. The LPP is designed as a "neural exercise" to reduce auditory hypersensitivities, to improve auditory processing of speech, and to improve behavioral state regulation. The LPP uses acoustic stimulation to exercise the neural regulation of the middle ear structures to rehabilitate and to normalize the acoustic transfer function of the middle ear structures. The current study is being conducted to evaluate efficacy and feasibility of the LPP with emotionally disturbed and learning challenged young people and will use objective measures to evaluate changes in acoustic transfer function of the middle ears structures, auditory processing skills, physiological state regulation, sensory symptoms, and academic pre and post testing.

Participants will be included in all pre-intervention and post-assessment measures. Participants will receive the Listening Project Protocol intervention (filtered music). The duration of the intervention is approximately 45 minutes per day, for 5 consecutive days.

Participants will be included in all pre-intervention and post-assessment measures. Participants will receive the Listening Project Protocol intervention (nonfiltered music). The duration of the intervention is approximately 45 minutes per day, for 5 consecutive days.

The assessment-only group will participate in all pre- and post-intervention assessments, but will not receive the Listening Project Protocol.

The filtered-music intervention will consist of listening to computer-altered acoustic stimulation, designed to modulate the frequency band of vocal music passed to the participant. The frequency characteristics of the acoustic stimulation are selected to emphasize the relative importance of specific frequencies in conveying the information embedded in human speech. Modulation of the acoustic energy within the frequencies of human voice, similar to an exaggerated vocal prosody, are hypothesized to recruit and modulate the neural regulation of the middle ear muscles and to functionally reduce sound hypersensitivities and improve auditory processing. The non-filtered music intervention will consist of the same music as the filtered-music intervention.

pre-intervention (within 1 week before intervention), post-intervention (within 1 week after intervention), 2 months post-intervention

pre-intervention (within 1 week before intervention), immediate post-intervention (within 1 week after intervention), 2 months post-intervention

pre-intervention (within 1 week before intervention), immediate post-intervention (within 1 week after intervention), 2 months post-intervention

pre-intervention (within 1 week before intervention), immediate post-intervention (within 1 week after intervention), 2 months post-intervention

pre-intervention (within 1 week before intervention), immediate post-intervention (within 1 week after intervention), 2 months post-intervention

Inclusion Criteria: children must be between ages 6-17 years children must be able to read/speak in English. Parents must be able to read/speak in either English or Spanish children must be patients, students and/or residents at Reiss-Davis/Vista del Mar Exclusion Criteria: children who wear a hearing device children with a history of heart disease children who are currently being treated for a seizure disorder children who are non-verbal