Adolescents' Experiences of Receiving and Living With Sequential Cochlear Implants: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis

Abstract

There is currently a unique opportunity to examine the experiences of young people who receive a second sequential cochlear implant (SCI), after only having had 1 cochlear implant (CI) for most of their lives. Eleven young people who had opted to receive an SCI were interviewed. Interpretative phenomenological analysis resulted in the identification of 6 master themes. Most participants enjoyed improved confidence and social well-being following their SCI and felt that 2 CIs were superior to 1. The majority identified themselves as hearing and deaf, but not culturally Deaf, as they strived to live in the hearing world. However, this was not without challenges and many young people experienced feelings of difference in the hearing world. These findings have clinical implications in terms of the role of clinical psychologists and other mental health professionals in CI clinics and in providing information to families making decisions about CIs. These findings add to the emergent deaf identity development literature in young people with CIs.