Abstract
Objective:
This study investigated the effectiveness of a German version of the Active Communication Education (ACE) program.
Research design:
An exploratory cohort study was conducted with pre-post measures of communication strategy use, acceptance, activity and participation, health-related quality of life, anxiety, and depression. Post-program measures also included the International Outcome Inventory – Alternative Interventions (IOI-AI), a modified version of the Client Oriented Scale of Improvement (M-COSI), and open-ended questions.
Study sample:
Thirty older adults with acquired hearing loss (M age = 70.27, SD = 5.77) attended three or more ACE sessions.
Intervention:
The ACE program consisted of five, weekly 2 h group sessions with 6 to 10 participants.
Data collection and analysis:
Pre-post self-report measures were completed pre-program, after two weeks, and 6 months post-program. Within-group changes and effect sizes were calculated. The IOI-AI results were descriptively analysed. Categories for the M-COSI and open-ended data were analysed using the qualitative method of summarizing-content analysis.
Results:
Statistically significant within-group improvements were found for communication strategy use and acceptance of hearing loss. The IOI-AI showed a positive impact of ACE on activity and participation. The majority of participants (83.3%) reported improvement in their primary communication goal.
Conclusion:
The German version of the ACE program showed positive benefits for adults with hearing loss and can be recommended