AUDIOLOGY PRAXIS STUDY EXAMS GUIDE
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS SET A+
✔✔Which of the following is the most appropriate action for an audiologist to take when
counseling a patient with a hearing impairment?
A.Encouraging the patient to buy a hearing aid
B.Recommending that the patient buy an assistive device
C.Informing the patient of his or her rehabilitative options
D.Persuading the patient to accept limitations in communications
E.Advising the patient to minimize public activity - ✔✔Correct Answer: C
Option (C) is correct. Informing patients about rehabilitative options offers them
opportunities to learn how to manage hearing loss and improve communication.
✔✔Which of the following is an accurate statement concerning measures of
speechreading ability?
A.Speechreading test results are likely to have a high correlation with measures of
visual intelligence.
B.Intertalker differences are eliminated as a test variable when speechreading test
results are scored on the basis of viseme recognition.
C.The most realistic measures of speechreading ability are administered in a visual
mode only.
D.The most realistic measures of speechreading ability are administered in a combined
auditory-visual mode.
E.The most appropriate material to use in measuring speechreading ability is nonsense
syllables. - ✔✔Correct Answer: D
Option (D) is correct. Speechreading in actual use depends on both auditory and visual
input for most clients. The measure of speechreading ability that best reflects a client's
real ability is one that is administered in a combined auditory-visual mode.
✔✔One component of the adult aural rehabilitation process is listening training. In
listening training, the patient is trained to
,A.use clear speech and assertiveness training
B.hear the frequencies within the human vocal range better
C.be alert, attentive, and set to receive communication
D.visually perceive phonemic differences
E.hear better in the presence of noise - ✔✔Correct Answer: C
Option (C) is correct. Being alert, attentive, and set to receive communication are the
important components to improve listening skills.
✔✔Answer the question below by clicking on the correct response.
Question:
During subjective verification of hearing-aid directionality, a patient indicates that when
noise comes from behind, the noise seems especially loud. Which of the following is
most likely the cause?
A.Both microphone openings are probably blocked.
B.The microphones are probably wired backward.
C.Low-frequency gain is too high.
D.The vent is too large.
E.The vent is too small. - ✔✔Correct Answer: B
Option (B) is correct. Directional microphones are designed to reduce sounds from
behind the listener. If the listener perceives that sounds are loud from behind, likely the
front microphone is functioning like the back microphone and undesirable sounds are
not being cancelled from behind.
✔✔Hearing-conservation programs for children often include screening with pure tones
and acoustic immittance measures, whereas such programs for adults will likely use
only pure tones for screening. Which of the following justifies this difference?
A.There is a significantly higher incidence of middle-ear pathology among children than
among adults.
B.There is a significantly lower incidence of middle-ear pathology among children than
among adults.
C.Screenings for children often take place in challenging acoustic environments.
D.Hearing-conservation programs for children primarily focus on the impact that middle-
ear pathology can have on educationally significant hearing loss.
E.Acoustic-immittance measures for adults are less sensitive in identifying middle-ear
pathology in adults. - ✔✔Correct Answer: A
Option (A) is correct. Acoustic-immittance measures, although they do not test hearing
sensitivity, detect the possible presence of middle-ear pathology. For appropriate
hearing care, therefore, both acoustic-immittance and pure-tone measures are
necessary for children. Because adults are less susceptible to pathologies detected by
acoustic-immittance measures, such measures are not efficient for adult screening
programs
,✔✔Answer the question below by clicking on the correct response.
Question:
Diagnostic audiometers generally provide one-third-octave noise bands for use in
masking pure tones. This bandwidth is used because bands of that width
A.are centered in the frequency range of normal speech
B.encompass the width of a critical band
C.produce more masking than pink noise does
D.produce more masking than half-octave bands do
E.are less than the width of a critical band - ✔✔Correct Answer: B
Option (B) is correct. Narrow bands of masking noise should be wider than a critical
band so that they will provide good masking for the frequency being tested without
requiring high overall intensity just to achieve effective masking levels on that one
frequency.
✔✔It is important to consider the gestational age of an infant, rather than the
chronological age, when interpreting which of the following?
A.ABR Wave V latencies
B.DPOAE responses
C.TORCH factors
D.Apgar scores
E.WIPI scores - ✔✔Correct Answer: A
Option (A) is correct. Prematurity affects the stage of myelinization of the auditory
nervous system, which affects the latencies of auditory evoked potentials up to 18
months of age.
✔✔An audiometer attenuator is set to 0 dB HL. Which of the following is true about the
sound pressure level output at the earphone?
A.It is constant across all frequencies.
B.It is lowest at midfrequencies.
C.It increases as a function of frequency.
D.It is highest at 4000 Hz.
E.It decreases 6 dB per octave. - ✔✔Correct Answer: B
Option (B) is correct. The sound pressure level necessary to achieve 0 dB hearing level
is highest at low frequencies, lessens in the middle frequencies, and then increases at
high frequencies.
✔✔A patient in the early stages of Ménière's disease will have an increase in the
amount of endolymph in the inner ear. At the same time, audiometric assessment is
, likely to show sensorineural hearing loss that primarily affects which of the following
frequency ranges?
A.All frequencies equally
B.250-2000 Hz
C.2000-4000 Hz
D.4000-8000 Hz
E.8000-10000 Hz - ✔✔Correct Answer: B
Option (B) is correct. The increase in the amount of endolymph in the inner ear expands
the apical end of the cochlea because of a decreasing stiffness gradient of the basilar
membrane. Since it is the low frequencies that are sensed in this location, it is the low
frequencies that are diminished when there is too much endolymph.
✔✔A person calls to order tickets for a concert and is told that at the rear of the
orchestra section, which is 20 meters from the stage, the average intensity is 65 dB
SPL. The person decides to purchase tickets for seats that are 10 meters from the
stage, where the sound-pressure level will average which of the following?
A.59 dB SPL
B.62 dB SPL
C.65 dB SPL
D.68 dB SPL
E.71 dB SPL - ✔✔Correct Answer: E
Option (E) is correct. According to the inverse square law, the sound intensity
decreases by 6 dB when the distance from a sound source doubles. Conversely, the
sound intensity increases by 6 dB when the distance to the sound source is halved.
✔✔The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard for classroom acoustics
(ANSI/ASA S12.60) pertains to noise levels in unoccupied classrooms and
recommended reverberation times. The ANSI standards are intended for use in the
design of new classrooms and in the renovation of existing classrooms.
The recommended noise levels and reverberation times are
A.10 dBA or less and 0.1 seconds or less
B.50 dBA or less and 1.0 seconds or less
C.35 dBA or less and 0.6 seconds or less
D.55 dBA or less and 0.6 seconds or less
E.45 dBA or less and 4.1 seconds or less - ✔✔Correct Answer: C
Option (C) is correct. The ANSI standards for classroom acoustics specifies that
ambient noise levels in unoccupied classrooms should not exceed 35 dBA and that
reverberation times not exceed 0.6 seconds.
✔✔The cochlear implant signal-processing strategy in which brief pulses are presented
to each electrode in a nonoverlapping sequence is known as
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS SET A+
✔✔Which of the following is the most appropriate action for an audiologist to take when
counseling a patient with a hearing impairment?
A.Encouraging the patient to buy a hearing aid
B.Recommending that the patient buy an assistive device
C.Informing the patient of his or her rehabilitative options
D.Persuading the patient to accept limitations in communications
E.Advising the patient to minimize public activity - ✔✔Correct Answer: C
Option (C) is correct. Informing patients about rehabilitative options offers them
opportunities to learn how to manage hearing loss and improve communication.
✔✔Which of the following is an accurate statement concerning measures of
speechreading ability?
A.Speechreading test results are likely to have a high correlation with measures of
visual intelligence.
B.Intertalker differences are eliminated as a test variable when speechreading test
results are scored on the basis of viseme recognition.
C.The most realistic measures of speechreading ability are administered in a visual
mode only.
D.The most realistic measures of speechreading ability are administered in a combined
auditory-visual mode.
E.The most appropriate material to use in measuring speechreading ability is nonsense
syllables. - ✔✔Correct Answer: D
Option (D) is correct. Speechreading in actual use depends on both auditory and visual
input for most clients. The measure of speechreading ability that best reflects a client's
real ability is one that is administered in a combined auditory-visual mode.
✔✔One component of the adult aural rehabilitation process is listening training. In
listening training, the patient is trained to
,A.use clear speech and assertiveness training
B.hear the frequencies within the human vocal range better
C.be alert, attentive, and set to receive communication
D.visually perceive phonemic differences
E.hear better in the presence of noise - ✔✔Correct Answer: C
Option (C) is correct. Being alert, attentive, and set to receive communication are the
important components to improve listening skills.
✔✔Answer the question below by clicking on the correct response.
Question:
During subjective verification of hearing-aid directionality, a patient indicates that when
noise comes from behind, the noise seems especially loud. Which of the following is
most likely the cause?
A.Both microphone openings are probably blocked.
B.The microphones are probably wired backward.
C.Low-frequency gain is too high.
D.The vent is too large.
E.The vent is too small. - ✔✔Correct Answer: B
Option (B) is correct. Directional microphones are designed to reduce sounds from
behind the listener. If the listener perceives that sounds are loud from behind, likely the
front microphone is functioning like the back microphone and undesirable sounds are
not being cancelled from behind.
✔✔Hearing-conservation programs for children often include screening with pure tones
and acoustic immittance measures, whereas such programs for adults will likely use
only pure tones for screening. Which of the following justifies this difference?
A.There is a significantly higher incidence of middle-ear pathology among children than
among adults.
B.There is a significantly lower incidence of middle-ear pathology among children than
among adults.
C.Screenings for children often take place in challenging acoustic environments.
D.Hearing-conservation programs for children primarily focus on the impact that middle-
ear pathology can have on educationally significant hearing loss.
E.Acoustic-immittance measures for adults are less sensitive in identifying middle-ear
pathology in adults. - ✔✔Correct Answer: A
Option (A) is correct. Acoustic-immittance measures, although they do not test hearing
sensitivity, detect the possible presence of middle-ear pathology. For appropriate
hearing care, therefore, both acoustic-immittance and pure-tone measures are
necessary for children. Because adults are less susceptible to pathologies detected by
acoustic-immittance measures, such measures are not efficient for adult screening
programs
,✔✔Answer the question below by clicking on the correct response.
Question:
Diagnostic audiometers generally provide one-third-octave noise bands for use in
masking pure tones. This bandwidth is used because bands of that width
A.are centered in the frequency range of normal speech
B.encompass the width of a critical band
C.produce more masking than pink noise does
D.produce more masking than half-octave bands do
E.are less than the width of a critical band - ✔✔Correct Answer: B
Option (B) is correct. Narrow bands of masking noise should be wider than a critical
band so that they will provide good masking for the frequency being tested without
requiring high overall intensity just to achieve effective masking levels on that one
frequency.
✔✔It is important to consider the gestational age of an infant, rather than the
chronological age, when interpreting which of the following?
A.ABR Wave V latencies
B.DPOAE responses
C.TORCH factors
D.Apgar scores
E.WIPI scores - ✔✔Correct Answer: A
Option (A) is correct. Prematurity affects the stage of myelinization of the auditory
nervous system, which affects the latencies of auditory evoked potentials up to 18
months of age.
✔✔An audiometer attenuator is set to 0 dB HL. Which of the following is true about the
sound pressure level output at the earphone?
A.It is constant across all frequencies.
B.It is lowest at midfrequencies.
C.It increases as a function of frequency.
D.It is highest at 4000 Hz.
E.It decreases 6 dB per octave. - ✔✔Correct Answer: B
Option (B) is correct. The sound pressure level necessary to achieve 0 dB hearing level
is highest at low frequencies, lessens in the middle frequencies, and then increases at
high frequencies.
✔✔A patient in the early stages of Ménière's disease will have an increase in the
amount of endolymph in the inner ear. At the same time, audiometric assessment is
, likely to show sensorineural hearing loss that primarily affects which of the following
frequency ranges?
A.All frequencies equally
B.250-2000 Hz
C.2000-4000 Hz
D.4000-8000 Hz
E.8000-10000 Hz - ✔✔Correct Answer: B
Option (B) is correct. The increase in the amount of endolymph in the inner ear expands
the apical end of the cochlea because of a decreasing stiffness gradient of the basilar
membrane. Since it is the low frequencies that are sensed in this location, it is the low
frequencies that are diminished when there is too much endolymph.
✔✔A person calls to order tickets for a concert and is told that at the rear of the
orchestra section, which is 20 meters from the stage, the average intensity is 65 dB
SPL. The person decides to purchase tickets for seats that are 10 meters from the
stage, where the sound-pressure level will average which of the following?
A.59 dB SPL
B.62 dB SPL
C.65 dB SPL
D.68 dB SPL
E.71 dB SPL - ✔✔Correct Answer: E
Option (E) is correct. According to the inverse square law, the sound intensity
decreases by 6 dB when the distance from a sound source doubles. Conversely, the
sound intensity increases by 6 dB when the distance to the sound source is halved.
✔✔The American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standard for classroom acoustics
(ANSI/ASA S12.60) pertains to noise levels in unoccupied classrooms and
recommended reverberation times. The ANSI standards are intended for use in the
design of new classrooms and in the renovation of existing classrooms.
The recommended noise levels and reverberation times are
A.10 dBA or less and 0.1 seconds or less
B.50 dBA or less and 1.0 seconds or less
C.35 dBA or less and 0.6 seconds or less
D.55 dBA or less and 0.6 seconds or less
E.45 dBA or less and 4.1 seconds or less - ✔✔Correct Answer: C
Option (C) is correct. The ANSI standards for classroom acoustics specifies that
ambient noise levels in unoccupied classrooms should not exceed 35 dBA and that
reverberation times not exceed 0.6 seconds.
✔✔The cochlear implant signal-processing strategy in which brief pulses are presented
to each electrode in a nonoverlapping sequence is known as
