__Common Consequences of Hearing Problems
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The macroaudiology model allows us to predict what sort of difficulties will arise when a person's hearing does not work with a normal level of efficiency. Macroaudiology considers that there are two main processes that can be affected:
1. How Much Information is Received?
This will be determined not only by the quality of the listening environment, but also by the integrity and efficiency of the listener's auditory system.
The amount of information will be reduced if there is any deafness, or other dysfunction of the peripheral auditory apparatus. Similarly, if the auditory pathways in the listener's brain are not capable of accurately identifying and processing that information, the effect is to reduce the amount of information available to the listener.
Reduced information can be associated with:
2. Selective Hearing. Ability.
Selective hearing refers to our ability to attend to what we wish to listen to, and it is a vital part of our auditory capabilities.
It is not the same as "domestic deafness"!
We have to be able to select out activities of interest from all that is going on around us if we are not to be swamped with irrelevant information. if we have trouble with this selection, competing noise, both acoustical and informational (such as competing conversations or other distracting activities) will prevent our attending to what we wish to listen to.
This difficulty can be associated with:
The macroaudiology model allows us to predict what sort of difficulties will arise when a person's hearing does not work with a normal level of efficiency. Macroaudiology considers that there are two main processes that can be affected:
1. How Much Information is Received?
This will be determined not only by the quality of the listening environment, but also by the integrity and efficiency of the listener's auditory system.
The amount of information will be reduced if there is any deafness, or other dysfunction of the peripheral auditory apparatus. Similarly, if the auditory pathways in the listener's brain are not capable of accurately identifying and processing that information, the effect is to reduce the amount of information available to the listener.
Reduced information can be associated with:
- Failure to start attending as soon as someone else starts to speak.
- Inability to understand even when attending.
- Learning difficulties.
- Asking for frequent repetitions.
- Missing the punch-line of jokes and stories.
- Increased listening effort.
- Fatigue.
- Stress.
- Reduced social participation.
2. Selective Hearing. Ability.
Selective hearing refers to our ability to attend to what we wish to listen to, and it is a vital part of our auditory capabilities.
It is not the same as "domestic deafness"!
We have to be able to select out activities of interest from all that is going on around us if we are not to be swamped with irrelevant information. if we have trouble with this selection, competing noise, both acoustical and informational (such as competing conversations or other distracting activities) will prevent our attending to what we wish to listen to.
This difficulty can be associated with:
- Noise distress.
- Reduced social participation.
- Distress in crowds and unstructured social situations.
