Four children in a classroom; three are seated around a table playing a game with board game pieces, and one girl is sitting on the floor looking thoughtful.

Signs of Auditory Processing Disorder

People with Auditory Processing Disorder (APD) struggle to comprehend information that is highly detailed, is delivered quickly or in a noisy environment because they haven’t developed the ability to separate speech from noise and focus on sounds while suppressing noise.

According to the American Speech-Language Hearing Association (ASHA), people with APD often experience difficulties understanding and interpreting auditory information despite having hearing within normal limits or having a hearing loss and wear hearing aids.

People with APD may hear well when it is quiet, however, hearing becomes more difficult in noisy environments. As a result, many children do not learn as well as others in noisy classrooms and homes and adults may struggle at work meetings or social functions.

Behaviours seen in people with APD may include:

  • Difficulty hearing in the presence of background noise (e.g. classroom, noisy restaurant, groups) and generally performs well in a one-on-one situation

  • Struggles with following lengthy instruction

  • Inability to understand and retain verbal information leading to slow or delayed response to verbal requests and instructions

  • Delayed or misunderstand jokes, idioms and figurative language

  • Sitting through or listening to lengthy sessions/lectures is a challenge

  • Trouble remembering and summarising information

  • Poor auditory attention span

  • Needs task simplification. Easily distracted by loud or sudden sounds

  • Difficulty grasping abstract concepts

  • Often misunderstands what is said and needs information to be repeated or rephrased

  • Diagnosed with a language or listening disorder, brain trauma/injury or disorder or a history of middle ear infections/fluid

  • Poor organisational skills and rarely completes tasks

  • Difficulties spelling and reading

  • Difficulty perceiving high frequency sounds ‘t’, ‘k’, ‘s’, ‘k’, ‘p’, ‘th’, ‘sh’, and/or similar sounds (e.g. da’ and ‘ba’)

  • Difficulty in expressing and articulating information and often giving inconsistent responses to the same sounds or information

If these apply, you or your child might have an APD.

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APD affects people in a number of ways. Some of these include:

  • Feelings of incompetence resulting in depression

  • Social isolation and withdrawal due to auditory fatigue

  • Feelings of frustration resulting in aggressive and/or disruptive behaviours

  • Cynicism toward communication and learning

  • Poor self-esteem and relationships with peers

  • Some become bored and restless, and others may become disruptive or take risks

  • They can appear to have difficulty paying attention or following instructions and can often be misdiagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)

  • Slow academic progress and a limited learning potential

A routine audiological test will not diagnose APD as results will appear normal. An APD evaluation can pinpoint the APD categories that require strengthening and a personalised treatment plan can be developed.

If APD is suspected, assessment will involve a variety of specialised audiological tests. Mackay Hearing offers comprehensive APD assessment and thorough treatment plans.

If you would like more information on APD symptoms and testing options, please contact our friendly local team directly on 4952 4946 or email us at listening@mackayhearing.com.au.