Hearing from the Deaf Culture
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This paper addresses two research questions: 1) What are the communication preferences of the deaf ? and 2) Do deaf communicators exhibit unique communication habits that are part of the Deaf culture? When interacting with a hearing person, the deaf communicator will most often rely on exchanging written notes and using nonverbal gestures. Deaf communicators experience a lot of frustration with hearing persons when they are forced into exchanging notes. Writing is slow, and it is not very “interactive” in a lively sense. Since American Sign Language is not widely understood within the hearing population, it is typically reserved for interactions with fellow deaf communicators. ASL is fast and efficient. Thus, it is the “method of choice.” The term ‘Deaf culture” has been used to signify a unique group of people with a common condition. This culture has developed a set of attitudes and habits that appear to be universal within the deaf community. To wit, members of the focus group reaffirmed five Deaf culture communication patterns — passing behavior, bluntness, close interactional proximity, increased touching behavior during interactions, and unhurried communication exchanges.