Predicting the quality of communication life of university students with hearing loss

Abstract

Objectives: University students with hearing loss can have difficulties in academic performance and relationships with their peers due to limited communication abilities, which negatively affect their quality of life. The purposes of this study are to compare the quality of communication life of university students with hearing loss (HL) and normal hearing (NH) and find predicting variables for quality of communication life among communication abilities in the HL group. Methods: The Quality of Communication Life Scale (QCL) of 27 students with HL and 27 students with NH was measured. QCL is a scale measuring the quality of life associated with communication and consists of confidence and autonomy in communication, role and self-esteem, participation in daily life, and interaction with others. Communication abilities, such as listening, articulation, receptive vocabulary, expressive vocabulary, and reading comprehension of students with HL were also evaluated. Results: QCL of HL group was significantly lower than NH group. Listening ability was the only significant predicting variable among communication abilities. Listening ability could predict 25% of QCL. Conclusion: The results of this study suggest the need to improve the quality of communication life of students with hearing loss and that improvement of listening ability has a positive effect on the quality of communication life of students with hearing loss.