A Qualitative Study on the Communication Experiences and Effective Communication Strategies of Adults with Cochlear Implants

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to demonstrate the nature and significance of the communication experiences encountered by adults with cochlear implants in the course of their social lives, and to explore effective communication strategies for the same. Methods: Data was collected via one-on-one in-depth interviews with five adults with cochlear implants, then analyzed through the Colaizzi phenomenological methodology. Results: First, the communication experiences of participants were categorized into the two themes of negative and positive experiences, with eight resultant sub-themes. The negative experiences consisted of “emotional distance,” “a lonely island in the crowd,” “difficulties that are not resolved,” and “facing communication barriers,” while positive experiences comprised “climbing the hill of maturity,” “gratitude toward good and beautiful encounters,” “the joy of managing to do my share,” and “the dreams one sets out to realize in their youth.” Next, effective communication strategies were categorized into the two themes of strategies for continuing communication and strategies for overcoming breakdowns in communication, with nine resultant sub-themes. Strategies for continuing communication included “structuralizing situations” and “enthusiastic attitudes,” while strategies for overcoming breakdowns in communication included “recepting through the use of tools” and “expressing oneself to the end.” Conclusion: The participants in this study face restricted situations due to their hearing impairments, but grow through dynamic interaction with society, and continuously employed effective communication strategies to respond efficiently to social situations. Principal factors to be considered and future service strategies for aiding unhindered communication for the hearing-impaired were discussed based on the results of the study.