Enhancing Parent-Child Communication and Parental Self-Esteem With a Video-Feedback Intervention: Outcomes With Prelingual Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children

Abstract

Evidence on best practice for optimizing communication with prelingual deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children is lacking. This study examined the effect of a family-focused psychosocial video intervention program on parent–child communication in the context of childhood hearing loss. Fourteen hearing parents with a prelingual DHH child (Mage = 2 years 8 months) completed three sessions of video interaction guidance intervention. Families were assessed in spontaneous free play interactions at pre and postintervention using the Emotional Availability (EA) Scales. The Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale was also used to assess parental report of self-esteem. Compared with nontreatment baselines, increases were shown in the EA subscales: parental sensitivity, parental structuring, parental nonhostility, child responsiveness, and child involvement, and in reported self-esteem at postintervention. Video-feedback enhances communication in families with prelingual DHH children and encourages more connected parent–child interaction. The results raise implications regarding the focus of early intervention strategies for prelingual DHH children.

Caracterização da interação comunicativa entre pais de crianças e adolescentes deficientes auditivos que utilizam comunicação oral

“…Other authors 11 examined the effect of a psychosocial intervention program in video-feedback focused on the communication of 14 normal-hearing parents and their children with pre-lingual hearing impairment. The 14 dyads completed 3 intervention sessions analyzing the interaction before and after speech therapy.…”

Intervenção guiada por videofeedback a famílias de crianças com deficiência auditiva

“…Thus, hearing loss in children is commonly associated with difficulties in interacting with their family. Although a growing number of studies on access to early intervention indicate improved language outcomes in samples of children with hearing loss, there is still a gap in the communicative understanding and quality of parent/child interactions in this population (3,4) .…”

“…Within these interactions or dyads, the synchronicity of parental responses should increase the children's responses. However, when a child is born with significant hearing loss, the nature of the social exchanges between the hearing parents and their hearing-impaired child is altered (3,4) . In a study with mothers of hard-of-hearing children, increased maternal stress was observed, negatively influencing the quality of life of the families because of the decrease in the children's communication capacity and the consequent increase in behavioral problems.…”

“…The period during and immediately after diagnosis provides opportunities for the professionals involved in the child's enrollment in habilitation or rehabilitation programs to clarify the possibilities of the child and the appropriate behaviors to be followed, aiming at the development expected by the parents. Video Interaction Guidance (VIG) or intervention through video feedback is a widely used method to support behavioral changes especially associated with human interactions (3) . This tool has the potential to optimize SLP interventions with families of children with hearing loss.…”

“…Video recording the interaction between parents and their hearing-impaired children in natural situations allows the speech-language therapist to be more objective in the intervention, and watching them together encourages families to self-assess and visualize, from a different perspective, how their behaviors have a direct effect on the hearing and communication development of their children. In addition to these benefits, the literature reports that, after video feedback, there is also improvement in the self-esteem of parents who were initially negatively affected by the diagnosis of hearing loss (3) .…”