An accessible Image-Based Questionnaire for Hearing (IBQ-H): Item selection

To develop an Image-Based Questionnaire for Hearing (IBQ-H) that uses photographs instead of written descriptions of listening situations to assess hearing difficulties and hearing aid outcomes, with a view to overcoming language and literacy barriers to completing questionnaires. IBQ-H photographs represent the 14 listening situations of the Common Sound Scenarios (CoSS) framework. Development involved a Patient and Public Involvement (PPI) focus group and three online experiments. The focus group provided insights into the acceptability of an IBQ-H and feedback on photographic content. Experiments 1 and 2 were used to select images for IBQ-H. Experiment 3 examined opinions about the IBQ-H relative to a text-based version. The three experiments had 70, 42, and 55 participants, respectively. From Experiment 1, two photographs for each CoSS were selected. Experiment 2 refined this to a single representative image per CoSS, finalising the 14-item IBQ-H. In Experiment 3, participants preferred, found easier, and were more confident completing the IBQ-H over its text-based version. The 14-item IBQ-H is an accessible questionnaire for assessing hearing difficulties, which can be readily adapted for specific cultural contexts. Reliability, validity, and responsiveness of the IBQ-H are being evaluated.

本研究旨在开发一款基于图像的听力调查问卷（Image-Based Questionnaire for Hearing, IBQ-H），以照片替代听力场景的文字描述，用于评估听力障碍与助听器使用效果，以期克服传统调查问卷在语言与读写能力层面的使用壁垒。IBQ-H所采用的照片对应通用声音场景（Common Sound Scenarios, CoSS）框架中的14种听力场景。本次开发流程包含一项患者与公众参与（Patient and Public Involvement, PPI）焦点小组讨论，以及三项在线实验。其中，焦点小组讨论就IBQ-H的接受度及照片内容征集了反馈意见。实验1与实验2用于筛选IBQ-H所用图像：实验1为每种通用声音场景筛选2张照片，实验2则进一步精简至每种场景保留1张代表性图像，最终敲定了包含14个条目的IBQ-H。实验3则对比了IBQ-H与文字版调查问卷的使用体验，结果显示参与者更偏好使用IBQ-H，认为其操作更简便，且完成问卷时更具信心。三项实验的参与人数分别为70人、42人和55人。这款包含14个条目的IBQ-H是一款易用性较强的听力障碍评估问卷，可针对特定文化场景快速适配，目前其信度、效度与反应性仍在评估当中。