The purpose of this study was to assess the importance of communicative ability in the overall sociability of the older adult. It was hypothesized that the successful use of amplification by a hearing-impaired older adult would lead to an increase in communicative abillity and therefore sociability. A valid and reliable 35-item, two-part communicative ability and attitude sociability questionnaire was developed and administered to 50 older adults using a highly structured interview technique and fixed response set format. Part I of the questionnaire was constructed using a speaker-message-channel-receiver (SMCR) model as a conceptual framework and consisted of questions relating to a subject's communicative ability in social situations under a variety of listening conditions. Part II consisted of questions which sampled a subject's communicative attitude in social situations. / In addition to the sociability questionnaire, a hearing aid use and performance indicator form was developed. The objectives were to elicit information concerning subject satisfaction with the effects of amplification on communicative performance and to ascertain the actual amount of hearing aid use during the experimental treatment period. These data were analyzed for significant correlations between hearing aid use and sociability and between hearing aid performance and sociability. / In addition to assessing the importance of communicative ability in the sociability of older adults, "A Feasibility Scale for Predicting Hearing Aid Use (FSPHAU) with older individuals," developed by Rupp et al., was selected for further inquiry. The scale provides information regarding the probable effective utilization of amplification by an older adult. It seemed logical to assume that persons obtaining positive scores on the FSPHAU would also obtain high sociability scores if amplification was useful to them. Therefore, the hypothesis tested was that subjects obtaining positive FSPHAU scores would also obtain high communicative sociability scores after a period of successful hearing aid use. / If Rupp's FSPHAU is a helpful instrument in predicting the usefulness of recommended amplification, subjects who obtained a positive total score on the FSPHAU should also obtain positive hearing aid use and performance indicators. It was speculated that among all hearing-handicapped subjects provided with hearing aids, there should be a positive relationship between hearing aid use and FSPHAU total scores and between hearing aid performance and FSPHAU total scores. In addition, audiometric data related to auditory sensitivity and auditory speech discrimination ability were collected for comparison with self-report sociability questionnaire responses. / Results of this study led to the following conclusions: (1) Communicative ability is an important factor in the overall sociability of the older adult. (2) Concerning hearing-handicapped older adults provided with hearings aids, there is a positive relationship between hearing aid use and sociability and between hearing aid performance and sociability. (3) The FSPHAU appears to be a useful instrument in providing information related to the probable effective utilization of recommended amplification. (4) Hearing handicap can best be viewed from the standpoint of hearing sensitivity. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-01, Section: B, page: 0131. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_74400 |
| Contributors | UTT, HAROLD ALPHA, JR., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 128 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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