Maternal, Child Health and Neonatal Nursing Commons^™

Therapeutic Listening Communication In Children With Autism And Hyperacusis, Jennifer Margaret Hughes

Doctoral Projects

Hyperacusis, or auditory hypersensitivity, is defined as abnormally sensitive hearing and in some cases an extreme sensitivity, where normally tolerated sounds are perceived as excessively, even painfully loud. This is a debilitating condition for children with autism, causing activity limitations and participation restrictions, also leading to peer isolation and habitual sound avoidance behaviors.

This research explores a means of modifying the auditory environment of a child with hyperacusis in a safe, effective way for the purpose of improving attention span and facilitating learning. The small pilot study (n=4) was a single-subject, multiple-baseline design, conducted with school-aged children in the special …