Assessment of Stroop Color Word Interference Test-TBAG form performance in subjects with tinnitus.

PURPOSE

To evaluate ordinary behavioral pattern suppression performance of individuals with tinnitus under disruptive effect using Stroop Color Word Interference Test-TBAG Form (SCWT), and to determine the impact of acoustic stimulus on this performance.

METHODS

40 individuals with subjective tinnitus at Slight and higher severity according to Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) (16 females, 24 males; mean age: 42.02 ± 10.00) (Study group), and 40 healthy individuals (Control group) (18 females, 22 males; mean age: 38.85 ± 10.25) were included in this study. All individuals were subjected to audiological evaluation. SCWT was applied with and without acoustic stimulus (NB noise), and test completion durations were recorded.

RESULTS

It was determined that the duration for completion of 5 sections of SCWT, both in the presence of and without acoustic stimulus, was longer in the Study group than the control group. In the presence of acoustic stimulus, it took longer for the individuals with tinnitus to complete sections 4 and 5, and the control group to complete sections 3, 4 and 5 in SCWT in comparison with the lack of acoustic stimulus.

CONCLUSION

It was determined that SCWT performance of the individuals with tinnitus was worse than the individuals without tinnitus, both in the presence of and without acoustic stimulus. It was found that SCWT performances of both groups with acoustic stimulus were better than their test performances without acoustic stimulus.