Chapter 3 & 4 - Deaf Culture

How many people in the US are classified as "hearing impaired"?

36 million

In the Deaf Community, what does the term "HEARING-BUT" refer to?

A label designated for hearing people who have exhibited an extraordinarily positive attitude toward Deaf people and a deep respect for Deaf culture in general.

Final stage of cultural awareness

Awareness stage: deaf people come to terms with being Deaf, they are at peace with themselves, they have achieved fuller control of their lives

Who are CODAs?

Children of Deaf Adults

Culturally Isolated

Chooses not to be affiliated with the Deaf community

First stage of cultural awareness

Conformity, many members of oppressed groups spend years growing up trying to conform to society's expectations of their disenfranchised community. (shunning Deaf culture)

Second stage of cultural awareness

Dissonance: a person is exposed to the positive aspects of the stigmatized community for the first time, which triggers a reevaluation of his or her affiliation with this group of people

Culturally Marginal

Does not feel at ease in the Deaf community, but does not feel part of the larger, hearing society either (somewhere between both worlds, not feeling as though they belong to either)

Deaf Dominant Bicultural

Function well around both Deaf and hearing people, but would choose to be with Deaf people who can sign

Balance Bicultural Deaf

Individuals who are truly comfortable living in both the Deaf and hearing communities

Hearing Dominant Bicultural Deaf

Individuals who can function well within the Deaf community, but who for one reason or another, have relatively limited contacts with other Deaf people

Fourth stage of cultural awareness

Introspection: begin to reexamine the extreme stance from the resistance and immersion stage, miss some aspects of their old lives, realize that their parents had good intentions.

Who was the first scholar to propose the use of the capital D in "Deaf"?

James Woodward (1972)

How do hearing parents of a deaf child adjust the family dynamics?

Learn sign language, install visual alert systems (for doorbell and phone signals) and utilize specialized communication devices

Does the Deaf community accept the term, "hearing-impaired"? If not, why?

No because it is demeaning and tarnishes their image as capable individuals with a rich culture.

Does every deaf person use sign language or participate in the deaf community? If not, why? Does every person who identifies with the Deaf community have a severe or profound hearing loss?

No, because some people didn't become deaf until later in life. Not everyone who identifies in the deaf community has a hearing loss.

Culturally captive

People who grew up without knowledge of the Deaf community

Third stage of cultural awareness

Resistance and immersion: attempt to associate with people from their culture as much as possible. Become angry at the deception they were previously led to believe about others like them. (shun contact with mainstream culture because of the pain and self-hatred they endured growing up)

Culturally Separate Deaf

Someone who intentionally keeps contacts with hearing people to a minimum

What does the 90% formula state? List some examples of this formula.

That more than 90% of deaf children are born to hearing parents. (See chapter 3 for the remaining statistics)

What does "hard-of-hearing" mean to Deaf people, and what does the term mean to hearing people?

To Deaf people, it means someone who has some use of their residual hearing and relate their experiences to those of hearing people, whereas hearing people view HOH as something more related to Deaf people's experiences.

Why does the Deaf community frequently use the term "hearing"?

To describe people who are not deaf or HOH. (a label for non-deaf people)

What does "deaf" with a lowercase "d" refer to, and what does "Deaf" with a capital "D" refer to?

lowercase d: the physiological condition of not hearing regardless of whether or not they choose to identify with the deaf community. Capital D: deaf individuals who use sign language as their primary mode of communication, identify with deaf culture, and participate in the Deaf community