Demographics, Awareness of and Access to AI-Powered Captioning, and Psychological Adjustment among Hearing-Impaired Students in Rivers State, Nigeria

Abstract

This study investigates the relationship between gender, awareness of and access to AI- powered captioning, and the psychological adjustment and career development of hearing- impaired students in inclusive secondary schools in Rivers State, Nigeria. The rapid integration of Artificial Intelligence in education presents new opportunities for accessibility, yet the extent to which hearing-impaired students benefit from AI-powered captioning tools remains underexplored in Nigeria. The study is guided by four objectives: to ascertain the level of awareness and access to AI- powered captioning tools among hearing- impaired students in Rivers State; to determine their level of psychological adjustment in terms of academic self- concept, classroom anxiety, and social participation; and to examine the perceived influence of AI- powered captioning on their career development. Accordingly, the study addressed four research questions on awareness and access to AI-powered captioning tools, students' level of psychological adjustment, and the technology's perceived influence on career development. A purposive sample of 23 hearing-impaired students from 2 inclusive secondary schools in Rivers State was selected. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire (α = 0.87). The study concluded that age and gender do not significantly influence hearing- impaired students' awareness and access to AI- powered captioning tools in Rivers State. Instead, awareness and access are generally low and are more strongly affected by factors such as institutional support, the availability of assistive technologies, teacher preparedness, and digital infrastructure. The findings also show that the students exhibit a moderate level of psychological adjustment, with positive academic self- concept and social participation despite experiencing some classroom anxiety. It was recommended, among other things, that Special education professionals strengthen the psychological adjustment of hearing-impaired students by organising regular counselling sessions, peer support programmes, confidence-building activities, and classroom interventions that reduce anxiety while fostering positive academic self-concept and social participation.