Results of the Survey

Demographics

 

The survey participants included 59.71% U.S. participants and 28.86% participants in Canada. The ages ranged from 18–78, with a mean age of 43. Most (59.71%) were female, followed by male (18.35%), trans male (1.44%), and nonbinary (1.08%). The majority were White (65.11%), followed by Black (4.32%), Multiracial (3.96%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.88%), Latino (2.16%), American Indian (.72%), Middle Eastern (.72%), and Southern Asian (.36%).

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The majority (about 30%) had a college degree or a graduate degree (28%). Fewer than half (about 40%) were employed full-time. Income levels were on the low end with around half earning less than $50,000.

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Communication Barriers and Deaf Activism

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The majority (54.68%) reported that their parents always encouraged them to use spoken language rather than sign language as children, and their brothers or sisters never signed with them (54.68%). Almost half (49.28%) experienced emotional abuse in childhood, indicating that emotional abuse may be a common experience for deaf children (Knutson et al., 2004).

 

The majority (32.25%) reported preferring sign language and felt more comfortable around deaf people who sign (40.65%), 39.92% identified as deaf activists, and several participated in deaf and disability advocacy activities, which shows the importance of inclusion and activism (McCain, 2009).

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Main Correlations

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There was a moderate to large, positive correlation between childhood experiences and microaggressions in childhood, r = .458, p < .001. Having more positive experiences in childhood was associated with less distress from microaggressions. There was also a small, positive correlation between childhood experiences and sense of coherence, r = .207, p = .001. A higher sense of well-being and fewer stressors during childhood was related to a higher sense of coherence during adulthood.

 

There was also a moderate, positive correlation between microaggressions in childhood and sense of coherence, r = .387, p < .001. Experiencing more microaggressions in childhood was associated with a lower sense of coherence in adulthood. There was a large, positive correlation between microaggressions in childhood and microaggressions in adulthood, r = .552, p < .001. Additionally there was a moderate, positive correlation between microaggressions in adulthood and sense of coherence, r = .395, p < .001, indicating that deaf people who experience a lower sense of well-being and more microaggressions and distress in adulthood experience a low sense of coherence. These results suggest that positive experiences in both childhood and adulthood are associated with a higher sense of coherence. Supportive families and school environments are valuable (Hauser et al., 2008).

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Country Correlations

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There was a small, positive correlation between microaggressions in childhood and country, r = .120, p = .038. Also, there was a small positive correlation between microaggressions in adulthood and country, r = 129, p  = .027. These results indicate that compared to participants in the U.S., participants in Canada experience less distress associated with microaggressions in childhood, and fewer microaggressions and greater well-being in adulthood.

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Age Correlations

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There was a moderate to large, negative correlation between childhood experiences and age, r = -.437, p < .001, which showed that the older a person is, the less positive experiences he or she had in childhood. There was a small, negative correlation between microaggressions in adulthood and age,

r = -.113, p  = .046, indicating that the older a person is, the more distress he or she experiences associated with microaggressions. However, there a small, positive correlation between sense of coherence and age, r = .144, p  = .016, showing that the older the person is, the higher his or her sense of coherence, suggesting that older deaf people may have learned positive coping strategies.

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Gender Correlations

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There was a small, negative correlation between sense of coherence and nontraditional gender, r = -.190, p = .002. This indicates that compared to women, deaf people of nontraditional gender have lower sense of coherence. There was also a small, negative correlation between microaggressions in adulthood and nontraditional gender, r = -.127, p = .030. In comparison to women, deaf people of nontraditional gender experience more distress related to microaggressions. More research is needed on the intersectionalities of oppression.

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Multiple Regression Analysis

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The multiple regression analysis involved two steps. In step 1, the predictor (control) variables included country, age, men, and nontraditional gender, and the dependent variable was sense of coherence. In step two, the primary research variables, which included the childhood experiences measure, microaggressions in childhood, and microaggressions in adulthood, were added.

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In step 1, the model predicted 3.8% of the variance on the dependent variable; this was a small effect size. When the primary research variables were added, the model predicted 23.5% of the variance on the dependent variable; the primary research variables accounted for 19.7% of the variance, increasing it to a large effect size.

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Microaggressions in childhood and microaggressions in adulthood predicted sense of coherence, but childhood experiences did not. The results suggest that microaggressions can affect a deaf person’s sense of well-being and confidence in managing stress; stress may be cumulative and lifelong. Deaf people receiving social support is important (Schenkel et al., 2014).

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References

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Hauser, P. C., O’Hearn, A., McKee, M. G., Steider, A. M., & Thew, D. (2010).

Deaf epistemology: Deafhood and deafness. American Annals of the Deaf, 154(5), 486–492. 

Knutson, J. F., Johnson, C. R., & Sullivan, P. M. (2004). Disciplinary choices of

mothers of deaf children and mothers of normally hearing children. Child Abuse & Neglect, 28(9), 925–937.

Schenkel, L. S., Rothman-Marshall, G., Schlehofer, D. A., Towne, T. L.,

Burnash, D. L., & Priddy, B. M. (2014). Child maltreatment and trauma exposure among deaf and hard of hearing young adults. Child Abuse & Neglect, 38(10), 1581–1589.