Relationship between speech recognition and self-report measures

The performance of a prototype digital high-power hearing instrument was evaluated using tests of speech understanding in quiet and a questionnaire. The subjects were 26 adults with moderate-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss, most of whom were experienced hearing aid users. There was no significant difference between the group mean scores on monosyllabic word tests conducted in quiet for the prototype device versus the subjects' own hearing aids. However, responses to the questionnaire showed that 85% of the subjects preferred the prototype device to their own hearing aid(s). Although there was a positive correlation between the questionnaire results and the speech recognition score differences, overall there was a stronger tendency for subjects to prefer the prototype device than could be explained by their speech test results alone.