Comparing response options for the International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids (IOI-HA) and for Alternative Interventions (IOI-AI) daily-use items

Abstract

Objective: This study investigated how clients quantify use of hearing rehabilitation. Comparisons focused on the daily-use item of the International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids (IOI-HA), and for Alternative Interventions (IOI-AI). Design: Adults with hearing impairment completed the original versions of the IOI-HA and the IOI-AI daily-use item which has five numerical response options (e.g. 1–4 hours/day) and a modified version with five word response options (e.g. ‘Sometimes’). Respondents completed both IOI versions immediately after intervention completion and three months later. Study sample: In total, 64 people who had obtained hearing aids completed both IOI-HA versions and 27 people who had participated in communication programs completed both IOI-AI versions. Results: Participants reported higher scores on the modified (word) daily-use item than on the original (number) daily-use item. Participants who completed the IOI-AI did so significantly more than participants who completed the IOI-HA. This was true both after intervention completion and three months later. Conclusion: This study showed that comparisons between IOI-HA and IOI-AI daily-use item scores should be made with caution. Word daily-use response options are recommended for the IOI-AI (i.e. Never; Rarely; Sometimes; Often; and Almost always).

Key Words::

• Hearing aids
• psycho-social/emotional
• aging
• demographics/epidemiology

Acknowledgements

The authors sincerely thank the Office of Hearing Services of the Australian government's Department of Health and Ageing for their recruitment assistance, the study participants for their enthusiasm, and Michelle Nicholls and Tamar Phillips for support with data collection. The first author acknowledges the financial support of the Australian Department of Education, Science, and Training.

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