title: Use of Questionnaire-Based Measures in the Assessment of Listening Difficulties in School-Aged Children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  In this study, the authors assessed the potential utility of a recently developed questionnaire (Evaluation of Children's Listening and Processing Skills [ECLiPS]) for supporting the clinical assessment of children referred for auditory processing disorder (APD).
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 49 children (35 referred for APD assessment and 14 from mainstream schools) were assessed for auditory processing (AP) abilities, cognitive abilities, and symptoms of listening difficulty. Four questionnaires were used to capture the symptoms of listening difficulty from the perspective of parents (ECLiPS and Fisher's auditory problem checklist), teachers (Teacher's Evaluation of Auditory Performance), and children, that is, self-report (Listening Inventory for Education). Correlation analyses tested for convergence between the questionnaires and both cognitive and AP measures. Discriminant analyses were performed to determine the best combination of tests for discriminating between typically developing children and children referred for APD.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All questionnaires were sensitive to the presence of difficulty, that is, children referred for assessment had significantly more symptoms of listening difficulty than typically developing children. There was, however, no evidence of more listening difficulty in children meeting the diagnostic criteria for APD. Some AP tests were significantly correlated with ECLiPS factors measuring related abilities providing evidence for construct validity. All questionnaires correlated to a greater or lesser extent with the cognitive measures in the study. Discriminant analysis suggested that the best discrimination between groups was achieved using a combination of ECLiPS factors, together with nonverbal Intelligence Quotient (cognitive) and AP measures (i.e., dichotic digits test and frequency pattern test).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The ECLiPS was particularly sensitive to cognitive difficulties, an important aspect of many children referred for APD, as well as correlating with some AP measures. It can potentially support the preliminary assessment of children referred for APD.
authors.affiliation: 1MRC Institute of Hearing Research, University Park, Nottingham, United Kingdom; 2Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia; 3The HEARing Cooperative Research Centre, Victoria, Australia; 4Communication Sciences Research Center, Cincinnati Children's Hospital and Department of Otolaryngology, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; and 5National Acoustic Laboratories, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: Johanna G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Barry
authors.forename: Danielle
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Tomlin
authors.forename: David R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Moore
authors.forename: Harvey
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dillon
mesh_terms: D001308:Auditory Perceptual Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D057189:Checklist; D002648:Child; D003071:Cognition; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004007:Dichotic Listening Tests; D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D005178:Faculty; D005260:Female; D006320:Hearing Tests; D006801:Humans; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents; D057566:Self Report; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires