Date of Graduation

5-2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science Education

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Rehabilitation, Human Resources and Communication Disorders

Advisor/Mentor

Gilbertson, Margie

Committee Member/Reader

Hagstrom, Fran

Committee Member/Second Reader

Lorenzo, Benjamin

Abstract

The purpose of this research project was to investigate collegiate marching band members’ use of hearing protection during rehearsals and performances. A second purpose was to identify the concerns of marching band members about the use of hearing protection. Finally, the third purpose was to determine if the type of protection used, standard or custom, impacted wearing time. Hearing threshold sensitivity, tympanometry, and use of hearing protection were measured prior to the fitting of the custom earmolds and again at the end of the marching season.

Pre-season results indicated that the majority of band members reported they did not wear standard ear protection for practice and performances. The reasons for lack of consistent use of hearing protection with standard plugs were comfort, forgetting to wear hearing protection, perception of volume, and quality of sound.

Most participants who did not consistently wear the earmolds stated that fit, comfort, and perception of volume were the main reasons for inconsistent wear. Overall, provision of custom earmolds was associated with increased number of RMB members who wore ear protection as well as increased wearing time overall.

Keywords

Noise-induced hearing loss, Audiology, Hearing Conservation, Musicians, Service Learning

Download

Share

COinS