factors that affect communications involving people with hearing loss

Communicating with a person who has a hearing loss can be different from communicating with a person who has normal hearing. In some situations there may be few observable differences; in others, the differences may be substantial. Successful face-to-face communication requires close attention to several factors.

Perhaps the most obvious factor is the physical environment. We've all experienced difficulty understanding speech in a noisy environment, and we can readily understand that it would be even more difficult for a person who doesn't hear well.

A less obvious environmental factor is lighting. Because speech reading is such an important strategy for many HOH/LD persons, reduced lighting or inappropriately placed lighting can render an otherwise acceptable situation totally ineffective.

A second important factor in promoting face-to-face communications is the speaker and his characteristics. As you might imagine, the way in which a person speaks has profound influence on how easily a person with hearing loss can understand them.

Finally, characteristics of the listener, the hard of hearing, late deafened, or oral deaf person, are also important. He must do his part to contribute to successful communications.