Designing for the Life Span Segment 3

Slide 65 Content

Summary Conclusions - Hearing Change:

Hearing is the "early warning" system to alert the human being to danger - even prior to seeing danger present in the environment;
Individuals experience changes in hearing early - onset in the 40s;
There are two forms of hearing loss - amplitude hearing loss (loss of sensitivity to loudness of sound) and selective frequency hearing loss (loss of sensitivity to specific pitches of sound or highs and lows);
Selective frequency hearing loss (Presbycusis) is associated with normal aging, amplitude hearing loss is independent of age - with increasing incidences of amplitude loss found among the young;
Presbycusis among older adults is loss of sensitivity to high pitched sounds... the consonant sounds of conversation are lost making it difficult to discriminate between conversation and other background noises;
A change in behavior related to Presbycusis would be drawing closer to individuals for conversations or avoiding terribly noisy restaurants;
The hearing-aid industry has made great strides in providing prostheses for hearing that can be individually tailored - and controlled - for both amplitude and frequency hearing changes.