Hearing loss is a sensory-representation deficit, not merely an acoustic one.

Evidence

As we all know, hearing aids do not work like glasses, which correct for optical deficits in the eye. Hearing loss is not an acoustic deficit; rather, it is a deficit in the sensory representation of acoustic stimuli. Consequently, hearing aids are limited in their ability to compensate for the distortions imposed by the ear. — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 1712

As we all know, hearing aids do not work like glasses, which correct for optical deficits in the eye. Hearing loss is not an acoustic deficit; rather, it is a deficit in the sensory representation of acoustic stimuli. Consequently, hearing aids are limited in their ability to compensate for the distortions imposed by the ear. Hearing aids can amplify sound, improve the signal-to-noise ratio through noise reduction or directional microphones, and even include programs to assist with tinnitus tolerance. However, they cannot correct for many of the supra-threshold perceptual deficits experienced by listeners with SNHL. — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 1712

Categorization

• DEFINE: Sharp definitional distinction: hearing loss is supra-threshold representation deficit, not simple attenuation — this reframes why amplification is insufficient.
• XREF: Directly relevant to points on loudness recruitment, frequency resolution, and temporal processing established earlier in this book.
• SHARE: Worth sending to an audiologist or anyone who assumes a hearing aid ‘cures’ a hearing loss the way glasses fix vision.
• corroborated: 2 independent passages support this claim — Jennifer Lentz, Psychoacoustics- Perception of Normal…, 1712