Table 7.

Please respond by circling the appropriate number ranging from 1 to 5, for the following questions. If you have a hearing aid, please fill out the form according to how you communicate when aid is not in use.
1 = almost never (or never); 2 = occasionally (about one-quarter of the time); 3 = about half of the time; 4 = frequently (about three-quarters of the time); 5 = practically always (or always).
Various Communication Situations
1. Do you experience communication difficulties in situations when speaking with one other person? (For example: at home, at work, in a social situation, with a waitress, a store clerk, a boss, etc.)
1 2 3 4 5
2. Do you experience communication difficulties in situations when conversing with a small group of several persons? (For example: with friends or family, co-workers, in meetings or casual conversations, over dinner, or while playing cards, etc.).
1 2 3 4 5
3. Do you experience communication difficulties while listening to someone speak to a large group? (For example, at church or in a civic meeting, in a fraternal or women's club, at an educational lecture, etc.)
1 2 3 4 5
4. Do you experience communication difficulties while participating in various types of entertainment? (For example: TV, radio, plays, night clubs, musical entertainment, etc.)
1 2 3 4 5
5. Do you experience communication difficulties when you are in an unfavorable listening environment? (For example: at a noisy party, where there is background music, when riding in an auto or a bus, when someone whispers or talks from across the room, etc.)
1 2 3 4 5
6. Do you experience communication difficulties when using or listening to various communication devices? (For example: telephone, telephone ring, doorbell, public address system, warning signals, alarms, etc.)
1 2 3 4 5
Feelings About Communication
7. Do you feel that any difficulty with your hearing limits or hampers your personal or social life?
1 2 3 4 5
8. Does any problem or difficulty with your hearing upset you?
1 2 3 4 5
Other People
9. Do others suggest that you have a hearing problem?
1 2 3 4 5
10. Do others leave you out of conversations or become annoyed because of your hearing?
1 2 3 4 5
Raw Score __________(total of circled numbers; normal range: 10–18)
Score Interpretation (Schow, Smedley, & Longhurst, 1990):
Raw score Handicap range
10–18 Normal-no handicap
19–26 Slight handicap
27–38 Mild-moderate handicap
39–50 Severe handicap