Multiple comparisons of emotional and behavioural difficulties, communication processes, receptive vocabulary and abstract reasoning in children and adolescents with hearing devices in Islas Canarias

Abstract

The present study considered that children and adolescents with hearing devices keep emotional and behavioural difficulties, among other psychological complications. The study aimed to investigate whether emotional and behavioural difficulties, communication processes, receptive vocabulary and abstract reasoning differed between children and adolescents with cochlear implants (CIs) or hearing aids (HAs), according to multi-informant ratings. Method. The results of children and adolescents with hearing impairments were correlated in four questionnaires and psychological tests (SDQ, ITPA, Peabody and Raven) and to identify new socio-demographic and linguistic predictors of emotional problems and difficulties in children and adolescents with hearing devices. The study involved 187 children and adolescents with CIs, 113 children and adolescents with HAs from the two provinces of Canary Islands. 176 fathers and mothers, and 300 schoolteachers also participated. Results. Perception disagreements were found between children and adolescents, families and schoolteachers in terms of their SDQ ratings with significant differences among the multi-informant. Total SDQ score lowly correlated with other total ITPA, and final Peabody and Raven outcomes. Regression linear analysis showed six socio-demographic and linguistic covariates that predicted significantly children and adolescents who used hearing devices in the total SDQ score. Conclusion. Findings have consequences for developing schoolteacher-training programs of primary and secondary education and implementing evaluation systems related to the emotional and behavioural difficulties, communication processes, receptive vocabulary and abstract reasoning used with children and adolescents with hearing devices in Islas Canarias.