Brain Health, Cognition, and Audition-Brain Health, Cognition, and Audition Handout 7

Brain Health, Cognition, and Audition Handout 7

Pdf Summary

Listening is a unique human skill that allows us to apply meaning to sound, organizing and developing language and cognition. Hearing is a passive sensory process, while listening requires active attention and cognitive processing. For individuals with hearing loss, the goal of hearing care professionals is not simply to make sounds louder, but to help them listen more effectively. Listening involves attending and paying attention to meaningful sounds, while dismissing irrelevant ones, and it depends on cognition and attention. Multi-tasking, which involves dividing attention, can lead to distractions and reduce safety, such as when using cell phones while driving. For people with cognitive decline, their ability to attend to speech stimuli is reduced, leading to incorrect conclusions about meaning and intention. The relationship between hearing and cognition is interdependent and symbiotic, with cognition becoming more important as hearing declines and vice versa. In children, listening skills develop gradually, with the neurological and cognitive systems fully maturing around the age of 15. Distances hearing is crucial for incidental learning, which occurs when children listen to speech not directly addressed to them. Learning to listen requires intentional engagement and cognitive processing, as well as repeated exposure and practice. The cognitive needs of individuals with hearing loss and cognitive decline must be addressed, in addition to providing them with appropriate hearing access technologies. Ultimately, listening is a cognitive skill that can be enhanced through strategies and aural rehabilitations to create a more effective acoustic environment.

Keywords

listening

hearing

sound

language

cognition

hearing loss

attention

multi-tasking

cognitive decline

incidental learning