Forty hearing-impaired subjects were exposed to three stressful commun
ication situations in a laboratory setting. The communication patterns
used and the extent to which the subjects succeeded in coping with th
e situations were studied. Measures, such as the life orientation test
measuring dispositional style, a hearing questionnaire measuring the
ability to cope with different hearing situations, degree of control a
nd pure-tone audiometry were performed. Coping behaviour and expressed
emotion during communication situations were also observed. The resul
ts showed that controllability together with dispositional style and a
spects of expressed emotion played an important role in explaining the
overall success rates of hearing-impaired individuals.