Social intelligence of students with and without hearing impairment in mainstream schools

Abstract

Children must accomplish interpersonal tasks and behaviors to have an appropriate relationship. To achieve this goal, the development of social intelligence which is the ability of individuals to understand the feelings, thoughts, and behaviors of others, and respond to them properly, is important. This study aimed to compare the social intelligence of students with and without hearing impairment. This study was descriptive and 122 students from mainstream schools participated (61 students with hearing impairment and 61 without any disability). The Tromso Social Intelligence scale was used to gather the data and analyze it. The results showed that social intelligence and its components (social information processing, social skills, and social awareness) are lower in students with hearing impairment than their peers from the general population. These findings, make us look more into this area and have a plan and appropriate interventions to enhance the skills related to social intelligence in students with hearing impairment.