Effect of Noise at One Ear on the Masked Threshold for Tone at the Other

Hirsh found that when noise and signal are presented at one ear and noise alone to the other, the threshold for a tonal signal is lower than when the signal too is presented to both ears. The present study is concerned with this phenomenon as a function of the level of noise in the ear not receiving the signal, and as a function of the noise level in both ears. Findings are shown to be in agreement with Hirsh's and with predictions from a theory of masking phenomena.