Do children With Cochlear Implants comprehend irony?

What is it about?

Children who are born deaf or hard of hearing may get a cochlear implant, electronic devices that convert sound into electrical signals, and send them into the inner ear. Most children with cochlear implants reach a good linguistic competence. We tested the comprehension of ironic statements (e.g., "What a wonderful day!" when it is pouring rain) with the goal of assessing this pragmatic ability that is understudied in children with cochlear implants, and establishing which factors might promote it (mindreading, language or prosodic skills). We found that children with cochlear implants experienced many difficulties in understanding ironic statements, and we discuss these results.

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Why is it important?

Irony is extremely used, and to understand that an ironic speaker actually means to communicate the opposite of what they are saying is crucial to avoid misuderstandings and to maintain good social relations. This ability is understudied in children with cochlear implants. We found that children with cochlear implants lag behind normal hearing peers (even the younger ones with the same hearing age), and this suggests that specific rehabilitation programs targeting pragmatic communication ought to be used.