ndings and personal contacts of a lifetime. This sense of being cutoff often leads to depression. The older adult faced with a loss of hearing also has a tendency to think that little hope exists at their age that they will be able to develop effective coping strategies. These individuals often subscribe to the popular misconception that individuals over the age of 65 are not capable of learning.
In point of fact, older adults are capable of learning, and their capacities in this context are often as great as are those of much younger persons (Bower, 1986; Rose, 1986; Horn, & Meer, 1987). Thus, the older adult confronting a 7hearing loss should not be reluctant to attempt to learn American sign language (ASL) and lip reading. Further, family members and friends of the afflicted individual should also attempt to learn ASL. These actions will eliminate much of the feeling by the newly deaf older adult of being cutoff from her or his surroundings and human contacts.
The older adult experiencing hearing loss will, of course, no longer be able to listen to music. Thus, the individual should develop interests and appreciation of endeavors not dependent upon hearing such as fine art. Further, the individual experiencing hearing loss will be exposed to some danger, as a result of not being capable of hearing sounds within the environment which indicate a need for an individual response. Automobile traffic is an example where the person experiencing a hearing loss will be required to develop alternative coping skills. Household sounds and the use of telephones are other examples, and there exist coping strategies and electromechanical aids in each of these areas.
Early studies which are still relied upon heavily indicated that one's capacity to learn began to diminish in one's early twenties (Pinter, 1984). These studies contended generally that the capacity to learn diminished by approx...