This study investigated the mental health problems of 89 deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) adolescents in New South Wales, Tasmania, and Western Australia. Participants completed the written (for oral students) or signed version for competent Australian Sign Language (Auslan) users version of the Youth Self Report (YSR). Students were educated in a…

We compared alcohol use among adolescents with and without hearing loss. Adolescents with hearing loss reported consuming less alcohol, less binge drinking, fewer episodes of drunkenness, and a higher age at first drunkenness than their hearing peers. Alcohol use did not vary between students who were deaf or hard of hearing or between students…

This article presents receptive and expressive American Sign Language skills of 85 students, 6 through 22 years of age at a residential school for the deaf using the American Sign Language Receptive Skills Test and the Ozcaliskan Motion Stimuli. Results are presented by ages and indicate that students' receptive skills increased with age and…

We studied identity development during 5 years in seven deaf adolescents who attended a school for deaf children in the highest level of regular secondary education (age between 14 and 18 years), administering identity interviews every year. Identity development is conceptualized as the processes of exploration and commitment formation (Bosma,…

To address the paucity of current research on the development of creativity in deaf students, and to extend existing research to adolescents, the present study investigated divergent thinking, a method of assessing creativity, in both deaf and hearing adolescents. We assessed divergent thinking in two domains, figural and verbal, while also…

In the education of students who are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH), there is much debate about how placement affects educational outcomes and quality of life. This study examined the relationship between quality of life and educational placement that include and do not include other DHH youth. Participants included 221 DHH youth, ages 11-18 with…

Frequent somatic complaints are not only a problem in themselves but also related to other difficulties. So far, no conclusive findings have been reported about the prevalence of and factors underlying these complaints in children and adolescents who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH). Such information would be valuable for prevention and…

Self-concept and ego development, two intertwined aspects of self-indicating well-being and social-cognitive maturation, respectively, were examined in a representative sample of deaf adolescents of normal intelligence (N = 68), using translated and adapted versions of Harter's (1988, "Manual for the self-perception profile for adolescents".…

Psychosocial factors, including socioemotional well-being, peer relationships, and social inclusion with hearing and deaf peers, are increasingly becoming a focus of research investigating children with cochlear implants. The study reported here extends the largely quantitative findings of previous research through a qualitative analysis of…

Given the important role of parent-youth communication in adolescent well-being and quality of life, we sought to examine the relationship between specific communication variables and youth perceived quality of life in general and as a deaf or hard-of-hearing (DHH) individual. A convenience sample of 230 youth (mean age = 14.1, standard deviation…

Individuals' relative awareness of thematic and taxonomic relations is influenced by factors such as language and background knowledge. Relatively weak in Korean language skills and also having relatively limited social opportunities, Korean deaf adolescents might be different from hearing adolescents in how they make decisions in taxonomically…

This study examined changes to speech production in adolescents with hearing impairment following a period of actor vocal training. In addition to vocal parameters, the study also investigated changes to psychosocial factors such as confidence, self-esteem, and anxiety. The group were adolescent users of cochlear implants (mean age at commencement…

A total of 86 deaf children aged between 12 and 16 years were recruited from schools for the deaf, specialist units attached to a school, and mainstream schools. Approximately one-third used hearing aids, one-third had received a cochlear implant before 42 months, and one-third had been implanted later. The 3 subgroups were matched for age and…

This study evaluated the benefits of cochlear implant (CI) with regard to emotion perception of participants differing in their age of implantation, in comparison to hearing aid users and adolescents with normal hearing (NH). Emotion perception was examined by having the participants identify happiness, anger, surprise, sadness, fear, and disgust.…

This study investigated the phonological processing skills of 29 children with prelingual, profound hearing loss with 4 years of cochlear implant experience. Results were group matched with regard to word-reading ability and mother's educational level with the performance of 29 hearing children. Results revealed that it is possible to obtain a…