Hearing loss and hearing damage as a result of exposure to excessive volume when listening to music are among the most restrictive but preventable health risks in adolescence and young adulthood.
In the German-speaking world, there are currently no evaluated programmes for the primary prevention of risky listening behaviour or the promotion of healthy listening behaviour that are tailored to the new listening habits and the changed life context of leisure time of the at-risk group in the context of the digital transformation. In order to take a first step towards closing this gap, the effectiveness of a low-threshold app-based offer that can be used as a public health measure with personalised elements was tested.

As part of a cooperation between BARMER and MIMI Hearing Technologies, an existing app (‘MIMI Hearing Test’) was further developed to include selected offers on the topic of healthy hearing (hearing test with feedback function, tips for healthy hearing, supplementary app for sound personalisation, etc.), each of which addresses specific experience- and behaviour-related components that are relevant to healthy hearing.

The aim of this evaluation study was to examine the effectiveness of this app-based primary prevention offer with regard to whether it can be used to promote healthy listening behaviour and whether the underlying experiential and behavioural components (attitudes, cognitions, knowledge, motivations) can be positively influenced. To this end, the effects of the measure on attitudes, cognitions, knowledge, motivation and behaviour were examined with regard to ‘healthy listening behaviour’ in the context of leisure / digital life in the target group of adolescents and young adults.

Duration: 2018 – 2019