Effect of Hearing Loss on Peer Victimization in School-Age Children

Nearly one third of school-age children report being bullied, primarily enduring teasing or rumors. Children with hearing loss (HL) are at increased risk of victimization due to being different from the general population. This project assesses effects of auditory status on bullying by comparing incidence and type of bullying in 87 youth and adolescents with HL (7-18 years) to published national data from peers in the general population. All participants wore auditory technology (i.e., hearing aids or cochlear implants), communicated orally, and participated in mainstream education. Each participant completed the 2009 National Crime Victimization Survey's School Crime Supplement. Adolescents with HL endured significantly higher incidence of bullying versus the general population (50.0% vs. 28.0%), particularly for exclusion (26.3% vs. 4.7%) and coercion (17.5% vs. 3.6%). Children younger than 12 years with HL report lower rates of bullying (38.7%) than adolescents with HL, but rates did not differ significantly. Future research should explore risk and protective factors for peer victimization in youth and adolescents with HL to reduce long-term consequences on quality of life.