Ray Bayles wrote:

>Yes there are some pretty negative reviews in some of the speech and
>hearing journals.  Many studies have been done.  Using headphones
>for a long time will screw up your hearing....
>
>Most of the problem seems to come from high volume.  People who use
>headphones at normal volumes, and occasionally rather than every
>night, seem to suffer litte.
>
>The damage is minimal compared to the harm done in a car with a boom
>box, or any other loud sounds.

Having worked with the study of sensory phenomena for some time in the
past (but caution: not recently), I have to add this: I agree with much
of what Ray Bayles has written, but with a very important stipulation:
How fast the damage occurs is not predictable, just as how and when aging
will affect hearing is not predictable.  Occasional use of headphones
is very unlikely to be harmful, but their habitual use is certainly
taking some risk, no matter how small.

Peter Harzem, B.Sc.(Lond.), Ph.D.(Wales)
Hudson Professor Emeritus
Department of Psychology, Auburn University