Hearing Impaired ChildrenNCT07782567
Artificial Grammar Learning in Children Who Are Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing: Stimulus Length Effect
A study testing Short linguistic content and Long linguistic content in people with Hearing Impaired Children, run by University of Illinois Chicago.
Trial summary
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. Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 5 to 7 years
- Conditions the study is for
- Hearing Impaired Children
- What is being tested?
- Short linguistic content and Long linguistic content
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 30 participants
- Where
- No sites listed yet
- Study dates
- Nov 2026to Aug 2027
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 5 to 7 years
- All sexes
- No healthy volunteers
- Child
Who may be able to join
- 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
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- Normal or corrected-to-normal vision
- Normal color vision
- Primarily spoken English user
- Access to remote video call technology
Who cannot join
- 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
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- 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
Trial locations and contacts
No sites are listed yet. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
About this study
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.
- Conditions
- Hearing Impaired Children
- Being tested
- Short linguistic content, Long linguistic content
- Keywords
- child, deaf, hard-of-hearing, hearing loss, hearing impairment, spoken language users, grammar, language development, language acquisition, morphology
- Medical subject headings
- Hearing Loss
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Short linguistic contentBehavioural
Grammar-like auditory stimuli will comprise short linguistic content.
Long linguistic contentBehavioural
Grammar-like auditory stimuli will comprise long linguistic content.
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Stimulus Length | Experimental | Children will complete an artificial grammar learning task. They will passively listen to two grammar-like auditory sequences in one of two experimental conditions that differ in syllable length. In the short condition, the sequences will contain 1-syllable stimuli. In the long condition, the sequences will contain 4-syllable stimuli. Receives: Behavioral: Short linguistic content; Behavioral: Long linguistic content |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Accuracy on third grammaticality judgment test
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.
Measured: End of day 2 of the artificial grammar learning task
Secondary outcomes (2)
Accuracy on first grammaticality judgment test
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.
Measured: Middle of day 1 of the artificial grammar learning task
Accuracy on the second grammaticality judgment 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.
Measured: Start of day 2 of the artificial grammar learning task
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted24 Aug 2026
- Study startNov 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completionJun 2027 (estimated)
- Study completionAug 2027 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Hearing Impaired ChildrenStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by University of Illinois ChicagoThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Model description
- The study uses a within-subjects design to compare conditions.
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University of Illinois Chicago
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
- Responsible party
- Principal investigator, Heidi Mettler, University of Illinois Chicago
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07782567
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- STUDY2026-0274a
- Other IDs
- 1K99DC024195-01
- Status last verified
- Aug 2026
- First submitted
- 14 Aug 2026
- Last updated
- 5 Nov 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 5 Nov 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- Artificial Grammar Learning in Children Who Are Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing: Stimulus Length Effect
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07782567
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- STUDY2026-0274a
- Conditions
- Hearing Impaired Children
- Keywords
- child, deaf, hard-of-hearing, hearing loss, hearing impairment, spoken language users, grammar, language development
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Not yet recruiting
- Enrolment
- 30 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University of Illinois ChicagoUniversity, hospital or other
- Collaborators
- National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)
- Study start
- Nov 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion
- Jun 2027 (estimated)
- Study completion
- Aug 2027 (estimated)
- First posted
- 24 Aug 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
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.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Not applicable
- Intervention model
- Single group
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 1
- Model description
- The study uses a within-subjects design to compare conditions.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Stimulus Length | Experimental | Behavioral: Short linguistic content, Behavioral: Long linguistic contentChildren will complete an artificial grammar learning task. They will passively listen to two grammar-like auditory sequences in one of two experimental conditions that differ in syllable length. In the short condition, the sequences will contain 1-syllable stimuli. In the long condition, the sequences will contain 4-syllable stimuli. |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 5 to 7 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Not accepted
- Age groups
- Child
Key inclusion criteria (10 listed)
- 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
Key exclusion criteria (11 listed)
- 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
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| Short linguistic contentGrammar-like auditory stimuli will comprise short linguistic content. | Behavioural | Stimulus Length |
| Long linguistic contentGrammar-like auditory stimuli will comprise long linguistic content. | Behavioural | Stimulus Length |
Primary outcome
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.
2 secondary outcomes
Accuracy on first grammaticality judgment test
Time frame: Middle of day 1 of the artificial grammar learning task
Accuracy on the second grammaticality judgment task
Time frame: Start of day 2 of the artificial grammar learning task
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 5 Nov 2026.
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing Short linguistic content and Long linguistic content in people with Hearing Impaired Children, run by University of Illinois Chicago.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 10 inclusion and 11 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: opening soon, as of the sponsor's last update on 5 Nov 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Heidi M Mettler, PhD (312-996-8481, mettler@uic.edu), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Accuracy on third grammaticality judgment test (time frame: End of day 2 of the artificial grammar learning task). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 5 Nov 2026.