The relationship of locus of control, self-control, and acceptable noise levels for young listeners with normal hearing

Abstract

Objective: Background noise acceptance while listening to speech, assessed via the acceptable noise level (ANL) measure, has been shown to be an accurate predictor of hearing-aid success. No specific listener characteristics have been identified as being related to a listener's ability to accept background noise. The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not locus of control and self-control are related to ANL. Design: Correlational design. Study sample: Participants were seventy young adults (21 male, 49 female; aged 19 to 39 years) with normal hearing. Participants completed psychological profiles that evaluated locus of control and self-control and their ANLs were measured. Results: Results revealed correlations between ANL and self-control. Listeners with higher levels of self-control accepted more background noise than listeners with lower levels of self-control. Conclusions: This research suggests that exercises aimed at strengthening a listener's auditory self-control may lead to improved background noise acceptance. Improvement in background noise acceptance could lead to improved hearing-aid success. Future research should explore these possibilities.

Key Words::

• Acceptable noise level
• background noise
• locus of control
• self-control

Acknowledgements

Thank you to Elizabeth Adams, David Evans, Robert Moore, and James Van Haneghan for their help and assistance throughout this project. Presented at: Relationships Among Locus of Control, Self-Control, & Acceptable Noise Levels. November 2010, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.