Validation of a quality-of-life questionnaire for Italian deaf adolescents: Italian/LIS YQOL-DHH

Studying health-related quality-of-life during adolescence involves examining interpersonal adaptation and self-efficacy perception. Among deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) adolescents this task is complex due to additional factors related to hearing loss. This is a crucial issue, since it reflects the degree of well-being and social integration in individuals at risk of margination and exclusion. The study aimed to validate the Italian/Italian Sign Language (LIS) version of Youth Quality-of-Life for Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing (YQOL-DHH) questionnaire. 105 deaf adolescents were recruited from a hospital and a school. After administration, we assessed internal consistency using Cronbach's alpha, concurrent validity with the Children's Depression Inventory-CDI through Pearson's correlation coefficient and mean score differences across the instrument's domain (advocacy, perceived stigma, participation) according to demographic and clinical variables. Internal consistency revealed significant data with Cronbach's Alpha 0.86 for advocacy and participation and 0.76 for perceived stigma domain. Regarding concurrent validity we observed significant correlations between CDI and each domain (p < 0,0001). Furthermore, we investigated the effect of variables: gender, age, and hearing device use on domains' scores but found no significant differences. In conclusion, the Italian/LIS version of YQOL-DHH proved to be a reliable, valid, quick, and easy-to-use tool for clinical and research purposes.