Examination of Language, Behavioral, Academic, and Social Skills of Cochlear Implant Users in Early Primary Education.

Background:  Cochlear implants (CIs) improve spoken language skills as well as social and academic performance in children with severe and profound sensorineural hearing loss.

Purpose:  We compare the social skills, academic competence, and problem behaviors in children with CIs and their typical-hearing peers and investigate the relationship between language skills and social skills, academic competence, and problem behaviors in children with CIs.

Research design:  Thirty-two children with CIs were divided into two groups according to implantation age: early (n = 17) and late-implanted group (n = 15). The control group was formed by the inclusion of five same-sex classmates of each implanted child selected by the teachers of the children with CIs. Thus, 160 typical-hearing children were included in the control group.

Study sample:  Thirty-two children with CIs and 160 typical-hearing children participated in this study.

Data collection and analysis:  Primary school teachers rated the children's social skills, academic competence, and problem behaviors using the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS). The language skills of the children with CIs were assessed with the Turkish Expressive and Receptive Language Test (TIFALDI).

Results:  A statistically significant difference was found between the SSRS scores of the study and control groups, which was mostly due to lower social skills, and academic competence, and higher problem behavior ratings in the late-implanted group. In the study group, there was a statistically significant correlation between TIFALDI and SSRS scores.

Conclusion:  Early cochlear implantation provides advantages in social skills and vocabulary for children with profound congenital hearing loss. Late-implanted children need special support in different developmental areas despite attending mainstream education.