Self-Reported Reasons for the Non-Use of Hearing Aids Among Hispanic Adults With Hearing Loss.

Purpose To examine the self-reported reasons for the non-use of hearing aids among Mexican-American Hispanic adults who have hearing loss. Method A total of 122 Hispanic adults with hearing loss, who did not currently or previously use a hearing aid, participated in this study. Participants completed a comprehensive hearing health questionnaire and the Hearing Handicap Inventory Screening Questionnaire to examine the possible reasons for the non-use of hearing aids.

What Does Language Have to Do With It? The Impact of Age and Bilingual Experience on Inhibitory Control in an Auditory Dichotic Listening Task.

Purpose The purpose of the current study was to examine inhibition of irrelevant information in younger and older English monolingual and Spanish-English bilingual adults. Method Sixty-one participants divided into four groups: 15 younger English monolinguals, 16 younger Spanish-English bilinguals, 15 older English monolinguals, and 15 older Spanish-English bilinguals participated in this study. Younger participants were 18-25 years of age, and older participants were 47-62 years of age.

Age-Related Changes in Speech Recognition Performance in Spanish-English Bilinguals' First and Second Languages.

Purpose The purposes of the current study were to examine the effect of age on Spanish-English bilinguals' speech recognition performance and to identify differences in speech recognition performance between Spanish and English bilinguals' 1st and 2nd languages. Method Fifteen younger adult Spanish-English bilinguals, 15 older adult Spanish-English bilinguals, 15 younger adult English monolinguals, and 15 older adult English monolinguals participated in this study. Bilingual participants had learned Spanish from birth and began learning English by the age of 4 years ( SD = 2.

The Effect of Memory Span and Manual Dexterity on Hearing Aid Handling Skills in New and Experienced Hearing Aid Users.

Purpose The aim of the study was to determine the effect of memory function and manual dexterity on new and experienced hearing aid users' abilities to use and care for their hearing aids. Method New and experienced hearing aid users were administered the Practical Hearing Aid Skills Test-Revised (PHAST-R; Doherty & Desjardins, 2012 ), a measure of a hearing aid user's ability to use and care for their hearing aids. The test was administered during their 30-day hearing aid check or yearly hearing evaluation appointment.

Performance on Auditory and Visual Tasks of Inhibition in English Monolingual and Spanish-English Bilingual Adults: Do Bilinguals Have a Cognitive Advantage?

Purpose: Bilingual individuals have been shown to be more proficient on visual tasks of inhibition compared with their monolingual counterparts. However, the bilingual advantage has not been evidenced in all studies, and very little is known regarding how bilingualism influences inhibitory control in the perception of auditory information. The purpose of the current study was to examine inhibition of irrelevant information using auditory and visual tasks in English monolingual and Spanish-English bilingual adults.

Changes in Psychosocial Measures After a 6-Week Field Trial.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the extent to which intervention with hearing aids, namely, a 6-week hearing aid field trial, can minimize the psychosocial consequences of hearing loss in adults who have previously not sought treatment for their hearing loss.

Method: Twenty-four adults with mild to moderate bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, who had never worn hearing aids or sought help for their hearing loss, participated in this study. Participants were fitted with receiver-in-canal hearing aids, bilaterally, and wore them for 6 weeks.

Analysis of Performance on Cognitive Test Measures Before, During, and After 6 Months of Hearing Aid Use: A Single-Subject Experimental Design.

Purpose: The present study examined the effect of hearing aid use on cognitive test performance using a single-subject treatment design.

Method: Six participants 54 to 64 years old with sensorineural hearing loss were fitted with hearing aids. Participants used the hearing aids for approximately 8 hr each day for the duration of the study.

The Effects of Hearing Aid Directional Microphone and Noise Reduction Processing on Listening Effort in Older Adults with Hearing Loss.

Background: Older listeners with hearing loss may exert more cognitive resources to maintain a level of listening performance similar to that of younger listeners with normal hearing. Unfortunately, this increase in cognitive load, which is often conceptualized as increased listening effort, may come at the cost of cognitive processing resources that might otherwise be available for other tasks.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the independent and combined effects of a hearing aid directional microphone and a noise reduction (NR) algorithm on reducing the listening effort older listeners with hearing loss expend on a speech-in-noise task.

The benefit of amplification on auditory working memory function in middle-aged and young-older hearing impaired adults.

Untreated hearing loss can interfere with an individual's cognitive abilities and intellectual function. Specifically, hearing loss has been shown to negatively impact working memory function, which is important for speech understanding, especially in difficult or noisy listening conditions. The purpose of the present study was to assess the effect of hearing aid use on auditory working memory function in middle-aged and young-older adults with mild to moderate sensorineural hearing loss.

The effect of hearing aid noise reduction on listening effort in hearing-impaired adults.

Objectives: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effect of a noise-reduction (NR) algorithm on the listening effort hearing-impaired participants expend on a speech in noise task.

Design: Twelve hearing-impaired listeners fitted with behind-the-ear hearing aids with a fast-acting modulation-based NR algorithm participated in this study. A dual-task paradigm was used to measure listening effort with and without the NR enabled in the hearing aid.

Age-related changes in listening effort for various types of masker noises.

Objective: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between cognitive function, listening effort, and speech recognition for a group of younger and older adults with normal hearing and a group of older adults with hearing impairment in various types of background maskers. The authors hypothesize that, as the masker condition becomes more difficult listening effort will increase, but the increase will be greater for older participants than for younger participants.

Design: A dual-task paradigm was used to objectively evaluate listening effort.

The Practical Hearing Aids Skills Test-Revised.

Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to revise the Practical Hearing Aid Skills Test (PHAST; Desjardins & Doherty, 2009) for clinical use.

Method: The original PHAST 5-point rating scale was revised to a 3-point rating scale, and the battery and hearing aid cleaning skill tasks were revised to include additional actions necessary to perform these tasks. The revised version of the PHAST is referred to as the Practical Hearing Aid Skills Test-Revised (PHAST-R).

Do experienced hearing aid users know how to use their hearing AIDS correctly?

Purpose: To assess experienced hearing aid users' ability to use their hearing aids correctly.

Method: In this study, we developed the Practical Hearing Aid Skills Test (PHAST) to objectively test a hearing aid user's ability to manipulate his or her hearing aids. The PHAST requires hearing aid users to perform 8 hearing aid care and use tasks that are basic skills typically taught to new hearing aid users at the time of their hearing aid fitting.