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NCT Number: NCT07782567

Artificial Grammar Learning in Children Who Are Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing: Stimulus Length Effect

The goal of this basic experimental study involving humans (BESH) clinical trial is to examine how stimulus length affects grammar learning in children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing and who primarily use spoken language. The main question it aims to answer is: do short or long stimuli better support grammar learning in this population? Participants will complete an artificial grammar learning task to see which condition (short vs. long stimuli) results in better grammar learning.

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Key information

Conditions

Hearing Impaired Children Ear Diseases Hearing Disorders Hearing Loss Nervous System Diseases Neurologic Manifestations Otorhinolaryngologic Diseases Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Sensation Disorders Signs and Symptoms

Age range

5 year–7 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: No

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Aged 5- to 7-years-old
  • Diagnosed with bilateral hearing loss
  • Uses bilateral hearing devices (cochlear implants, bilateral hearing aids, or a cochlear implant and a hearing aid)
  • Has used first hearing device for at least one year
  • No history of developmental delay that is unrelated to hearing loss
  • Normal non-verbal IQ
  • Normal or corrected-to-normal vision
  • Normal color vision
  • Primarily spoken English user
  • Access to remote video call technology

Exclusion criteria

  • Younger than 5 years old
  • 8 years, 0 months or older
  • Normal hearing in one or both ears
  • Uses one or no hearing device (e.g., cochlear implant, hearing aid)
  • Has not used at least one hearing device for one year
  • History of developmental delay that is unrelated to hearing loss
  • Nonverbal IQ below normal limits
  • Visual impairment not corrected by glasses or contacts
  • Color vision impairment
  • Primarily uses a signed language or non-English language to communicate
  • Does not have access to remote video call technology

Treatment and study plan

Short linguistic content

Behavioral

Grammar-like auditory stimuli will comprise short linguistic content.

Long linguistic content

Behavioral

Grammar-like auditory stimuli will comprise long linguistic content.

Primary outcomes

  1. Accuracy on third grammaticality judgment test

    Time frame: End of day 2 of the artificial grammar learning task

    Participants will be presented with novel, grammar-like auditory stimuli. They will decide whether each stimulus matches or does not match the artificial language that they were previously presented with.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Accuracy on first grammaticality judgment test

    Time frame: Middle of day 1 of the artificial grammar learning task

    Participants will be presented with novel, grammar-like auditory stimuli. They will decide whether each stimulus matches or does not match the artificial language that they were previously presented with.

  2. Accuracy on the second grammaticality judgment task

    Time frame: Start of day 2 of the artificial grammar learning task

    Participants will be presented with novel, grammar-like auditory stimuli. They will decide whether each stimulus matches or does not match the artificial language they were presented with previously.

Study contacts

Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.

Heidi M Mettler, PhD

CONTACT

[email protected]

312-996-8481

Tina M Grieco-Calub, PhD

CONTACT

[email protected]

312-996-0123

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

University of Illinois at Chicago

Other

Collaborators

  • National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

Registry information

Important dates

Study start
2026
Primary completion
2027
Study completion
2027
First posted
Aug 24, 2026
Registry last updated
Sep 1, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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