Comparison of early communicative behavior in young children with cochlear implants and with hearing aids.

Analysis of preverbal behaviors, which are the natural precursors of language development, was performed in three groups of young children with severe/profound hearing impairments, based on video recordings of interactions with a known adult. All groups were matched for age at assessment. One group of nine children had Nucleus multichannel cochlear implants with the MSP sound processor, whereas the other two groups of nine children each used conventional hearing aids. The first hearing aid group had unaided hearing threshold levels averaging 101 dB and were proficient users; the second aided group had hearing threshold levels averaging 114 dB and were poor users. Over the assessment period lasting 12 mo, starting at implantation or entry to nursery school according to group, implantees and proficient hearing aid users developed a strongly vocal/auditory style of communicative behavior, especially the implantees. This contrasted with a strongly visual/gestural style developed by the poor hearing aid users. It is concluded that implantees develop their early communicative behavior along lines that are similar to proficient hearing aid users, but more rapidly and more strongly in the vocal/auditory direction.