Speech acquisition with cochlear implants across the life span

Abstract

Hearing is the foundation for acquiring verbal speech and speech perception. For many of us, hearing came naturally, and we learned to engage in meaningful exchanges of languages from an early age. However, for those born deaf and/or hard of hearing or who acquire hearing loss later on, speech, language, and communication can be more difficult to develop and comprehend. Language acquisition starts from an early age, and those who are deaf or hard of hearing typically have delays in speech development, social pragmatic skills, reading skills, and more. Cochlear implantation surgery is becoming an increasingly common choice for deaf and/or hard of hearing patients who wish to be a part of the auditory world and cannot benefit from the use of hearing aids. Generally, the younger a person is implanted with a cochlear device, the better their speech and spoken language acquisition will be. Likewise, many studies show that the later in age a person is implanted, the harder speech acquisition will be. During this process I will research auditory training and speech and language development in both children and adults with cochlear implants. I will research therapies and success rates utilized by adults who are implanted at an older age and compare them to those implanted at a younger age.