The impact of socioeconomic status on auditory processing skills in Maltese children

Abstract

Auditory processing skills (APS) may affect the development of language. Understanding the impact that socioeconomic status (SES) has on APS can help to identify individuals at risk of poor auditory processing skills and in turn develop more focused intervention strategies to target these skills before serious repercussions emerge. This study explored the impact of SES on the auditory processing skills of 41 Maltese children aged between 7 and 9 years. A self-devised questionnaire was used to gather information relating to the SES of the children, using maternal education and occupation to categorise SES. Such information was compared with the children’s performance on an auditory processing test battery in order to analyse its effect. Results demonstrated a significant correlation between SES groups and performance on the Duration Patterns Test (DPT), an auditory processing subtest which presents tones of varying duration as a stimulus. In addition, overall higher mean scores on almost all the tests were observed for the mid and high-mid socioeconomic groups. This study provides the first preliminary indications that lower SES could be associated with poorer APS in Maltese children.