Development of the Mandarin Version of the Hearing and Functioning in Everyday Life Questionnaire

This study aimed to translate, culturally adapt, and preliminarily evaluate the Mandarin version of the Hearing and Functioning in Everyday Life Questionnaire (HFEQ-Mandarin) for older adults with hearing loss.

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✦ The floor

Discussion

Signed responses from readers of the wire.

✦ Clinical Takeaway ✦

No actionable change for non-Mandarin-speaking practices; Mandarin-speaking clinics should monitor this tool's full validation before adopting it as a routine outcome measure.

✦ Why It Matters ✦

Validated, culturally adapted hearing outcome measures in Mandarin are scarce, yet hundreds of millions of Mandarin speakers worldwide have limited access to properly normed audiological self-report tools.

✦ Key Points ✦

01Translates the Hearing and Functioning in Everyday Life (HaFEL) questionnaire into Mandarin.
02Includes cultural adaptation, not just direct translation.
03Preliminary psychometric testing (reliability and validity) was conducted.
04Expands outcome measurement access for a massive underserved Mandarin-speaking population.
05Published in Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research (JSLHR).

✦ Claims & Evidence ✦

ClaimEvidenceSupport

The Mandarin version of the HaFEL questionnaire demonstrates acceptable preliminary psychometric properties.

studypartially supported

✦ Research metadata ✦

PMID: 42659030
DOI: 10.1044/2026_JSLHR-25-00604.
Journal: Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research
Publication type: research_article
Evidence level: 2b
Population: Mandarin-speaking individuals with hearing loss
Intervention: Mandarin-adapted Hearing and Functioning in Everyday Life Questionnaire
Comparator: Original English-language HaFEL questionnaire (as reference for psychometric benchmarking)

Primary outcomes

Psychometric reliability of the Mandarin HaFEL; Psychometric validity of the Mandarin HaFEL

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