Hearing assistance technologies and social health among individuals with care and support needs: a scoping review

Abstract Background Hearing loss can affect communication, social interaction, participation, and the maintenance of social relationships, particularly among individuals who require care or support in everyday life. Hearing assistance technologies (HATs) may facilitate communication, but their relationship with the multiple dimensions of social health remains insufficiently understood. A multidimensional social-health framework encompassing Capacity, Independence, Social Participation, Structure, Function, and Appraisal provides a basis for examining these relationships beyond individual hearing outcomes. This scoping review aimed to map the existing evidence on HATs in relation to social health among individuals with care and support needs. Methods This scoping review followed the PRISMA-ScR guidelines and the methodological framework proposed by Arksey and O’Malley and further refined by Levac. PubMed, CINAHL, Scopus, the Cochrane Library, Ovid MEDLINE, Web of Science, and IEEE Xplore were searched. Studies were eligible if they included individuals aged ≥ 18 years with care and support needs and examined HATs in relation to findings relevant to social health. Data were charted and synthesised descriptively, and findings were organised according to the six domains of the multidimensional social-health framework, comprising Capacity, Independence, Social Participation, Structure, Function, and Appraisal. Results The searches identified 1,145 records, of which 21 studies met the inclusion criteria. The included samples were predominantly older. Findings were most frequently mapped to the Appraisal and Social Participation domains, whereas Structure and Function were comparatively underrepresented. Intervention findings included improvements in communication-related outcomes and reductions in hearing-related participation restrictions, whereas findings for loneliness, relationship satisfaction, social-network characteristics, and broader social engagement were less consistent. Qualitative findings highlighted stigma and perceived social judgement, with the social acceptability of hearing technologies also described in relation to everyday interaction and technology use. Conclusions Evidence on HATs in relation to social health among individuals with care and support needs remains heterogeneous and uneven across social-health domains. Limited attention to the structural and functional dimensions of social relationships highlights the need for more comprehensive assessment of social health in hearing-care research. Future studies should adopt longitudinal, network-sensitive, and culturally responsive approaches and consider the interpersonal, environmental, and care contexts in which HATs are used.