The relationship of self-efficacy on hearing aid use outcomes: A narrative review

Abstract

The present narrative review aimed to synthesize the available evidence on hearing aid self-efficacy and its relationship with different outcomes related to hearing aid use, such as adherence, perceived benefit, success, and satisfaction with the hearing aid, in older people. Studies published in English, Spanish or Portuguese were included, without restriction by year. Studies not related to the objective or conducted in other populations were excluded. PubMed/Medline and EBSCO databases were searched between August and October 2022, using controlled and natural language terms related to “Self-Efficacy”, “Hearing Aids” and “Aged”. Forty-nine potential studies were identified, of which six were selected, with a sam­ple size of 30 to 300 participants. All studies used the Measure of Audiologic Rehabilitation Self-Efficacy for Hearing Aids questionnaire to measure self-efficacy. Most of the studies were of cross-sectional design and most were conducted in developed countries. The evidence found is sparse and incipient, nevertheless, self-efficacy seems to be significantly related to adherence to hearing aid use and success with hearing aids fitting in inexperienced users. Furthermore, self-efficacy would be significantly related to satisfaction with the hearing aid, independent of previous experience. However, future research with high-quality evidence is needed, given the presence of selection bias and reverse causality, and limited sample size. These investigations should consider the target older adult population and differentiate be­tween individuals with and without experience with hearing aid use.