Quality of life in relation to perceived social isolation and learned helplessness in hearing impaired individuals

Abstract

The necessity to do present study is to see the effect of perceived social isolation and learned helplessness on quality of life in patients having mild and severe degree of hearing loss in age group of 40-55 years is firstly, there are very few reported studies on quality of life in context to perceived social isolation in the individuals with hearing loss in India. Secondly, most of the studies conducted so far did not have information with regard to the effect of the loss of hearing on perceived social isolation and learned helplessness effecting quality of life. Thirdly, there is hardly any study reported the gender differences in context to social isolation and learned helplessness. Fourthly, there is dire need to provide important dimensions from the counseling point of view to improve quality of life in hearing impaired individuals. The present investigation was undertaken to examine quality of life in relation to perceived social isolation and learned helplessness in hearing impaired individuals and provide intervention to improve their Quality of Life. Quality of life has been defined in macro (societal, objective) and micro (individual, subjective) terms (Rosenberg 1992 Bowling 1995a; 1995b; 1996; Bowling and Windsor 2001). It is affected by different factors like personality and coping style, socioculture factors which includes work stress, interpersonal factors like interpersonal support, health related problems like hearing impairment, blindness, physical and physiological problems. Hearing loss is a decrease in the ability to perceive sound. Hearing impairment can affect any creature that hears. Hearing loss is any degree of impairment of the ability to apprehend sound. A hearing impairment is a reduced hearing acuity, a hearing level that is greater than 25dB HL (Katz, 1985).Hearing loss is categorized by its severity and type of hearing loss. In this study we have taken individuals with mild and severe sensorineural hearing loss.