Meaningful life changes following hearing aid use: a qualitative user perspective

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Hearing Science
• Rehabilitation Medicine

Background:

• Hearing loss significantly impacts adult quality of life.
• Hearing aids are a primary intervention, but user experiences are complex.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the meaningful life changes experienced by adult hearing aid users.
• To identify both the benefits and challenges associated with hearing aid use.

Main Methods:

• Cross-sectional survey design utilizing open-ended questions.
• Inductive qualitative content analysis of 2122 meaning units from 653 US-based adult hearing aid users.
• Data collected from Hearing Tracker website community and Lexie Hearing database.

Main Results:

• Two domains emerged: 'meaningful benefits' (80.5%) and 'remaining difficulties' (19.5%).
• Key benefits included psychosocial improvements, enhanced relationships, and better occupational functioning.
• Persistent challenges involved hearing aid limitations, communication in noise, and design issues.

Conclusions:

• Adult hearing aid users report a wide spectrum of benefits and challenges.
• Findings underscore the complexity of lived experiences with hearing aids.
• Results can inform user-centered hearing aid technology and rehabilitation strategies.