Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 26, 2026
An Automated System for Sound Localization Testing in Hearing-Impaired Listeners
Published on: March 13, 2026
Comparison of self-reported and audiometrically-measured hearing loss in the Australian Defence Force
Katherine M Kirk1, Annabel McGuire, Peter E Nasveld
1The University of Queensland, Centre for Military and Veterans' Health, Mayne Medical School, Brisbane, Australia. k.kirk@uq.edu.au
Objective:
To investigate the relationship between self-reported and audiometrically-measured hearing loss in a sample of Australian Defence Force personnel.
Design:
Responses to a question regarding hearing problems were compared with contemporaneous audiometric data.
Study Sample:
3335 members of the Australian Defence Force for whom anonymised medical records were available.
Results:
The sensitivity of self-report data to identify higher-frequency hearing loss was lower than sensitivity at other frequencies, and positive predictive values were moderate to poor at all frequencies. Performance characteristics of self-report compared with audiometric data also varied with age, sex, and rank.
Conclusions:
While self-report hearing loss data have good performance characteristics for estimating prevalence of hearing loss as defined by audiometric criteria, this study indicates that the usefulness of self-report data in identifying individuals with hearing loss may be limited in this population.
