Abstract
Objective: This discussion paper aims to highlight factors that may be important in defining hearing loss and its consequences and to present different perspectives based on various models of disability. Method: Relevant literature was reviewed to develop the discussion. Results: Hearing is a complex function that has both cognitive and emotional aspects. A person with hearing loss may have consequences in the physical, mental and social domains. Hearing loss in the context of clinical audiology is currently defined based on type of pathology and severity. However, evidence from both clinical findings and research suggest that this may not cover all the aspects of ‘hearing loss’ as a disability. Conclusion: Defining and describing hearing loss and its consequences with a holistic approach has some clinical value particularly in the context of audiological enablement/rehabilitation.
Acknowledgements
The inspiration for this paper came from the ideas developed during an Ida Institute seminar on ‘Defining hearing’ and from various discussions held during Foundation Course Disability Research at Swedish Institute of Disability Research (SIDR), Linköping University, Sweden.
This article was accepted subject to minor corrections prior to the death of Professor Dafydd Stephens.
Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.
Notice of correction
The Early Online version of this article published online ahead of print on 09 Jan 2013 contained an error in Table II. In the first column, ‘Deafness’ should have read ‘deafness’. The error has been corrected for this version.