Self-Esteem and Hearing Loss: What’s Your Opinion? |

Self-Esteem and Hearing Loss: What’s Your Opinion?

Are you hard of hearing and comfortable about it? If you’re embarrassed rather than comfortable, you’re not alone. For the most part, people who are hard of hearing see their hearing loss as a sign of aging and reduced mental functioning and choose to keep it invisible. But silence and invisibility go hand in hand with powerlessness.

I think that people who are hard of hearing have a lot to learn from people who are culturally Deaf. People who are culturally Deaf have a strong lobbying group to get their needs met despite their small numbers. They see their hearing loss as a difference rather than a disability. They do not seek to be invisible. As a result, they get the accommodations that they need.

Think of the many times that American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters are present at graduations, conventions, and plays. On the other hand, how often do you see assistive listening devices (ALDs) or real-time captioning at these functions?

Our Differences

There are many differences between people who are deaf or hard of hearing in the United States. Here are some of them:

Difference in Numbers

Culturally Deaf: People who are born deaf or who became deaf early in life (usually before learning to speak). They rely mainly on sign language to communicate. There are approximately 300,000 to 500,000 culturally Deaf (with a capital D) people or 1.4% of all people with hearing loss.

Oral Deaf: People who are born deaf or who became deaf early in life. They rely mainly on oral communications to communicate. (Actual numbers are not available).

Late Deafened: People who become deaf later in life after acquiring language (usually after the age of 13). There are approximately 800,000 to 1.5 million late deafened people or 3.8% of all people with hearing loss.

Hard-of-Hearing: People with partial hearing loss ranging from mild to profound. There are approximately 28 million hard of hearing people or 95% of all people with hearing loss.
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Difference in Language

Culturally Deaf: People who are culturally Deaf use American Sign Language (ASL) as their first language.

Oral Deaf: People who are oral deaf are raised to maximize their oral and aural communication. They are usually fitted with hearing aids and encouraged to function as a hearing person. They use English as their first language but generally know some sign language as a second language.

Late Deafened: People who are late deafened overwhelmingly use English as their first language. A few may have learned basic sign language as a second language.

Hard of Hearing: People who are hard of hearing also overwhelmingly use English as their first language. Only 5% of hard of hearing people know how to sign.

Difference in Accommodations

Culturally Deaf: People who are culturally Deaf prefer to use ASL interpreters and use visual (rather than auditory) types of technology. They use visual devices with text messaging capabilities and captioning technology.

Oral Deaf: People who are oral deaf generally prefer a visual representation of English.

Late Deafened: People who are late deafened generally prefer a visual representation of English. They derive minimal benefit from hearing aids and technology.

Hard of Hearing: People who are hard of hearing usually prefer to use auditory devices with (or without) a hearing aid. They want to maximize their residual hearing and use amplified telephones, personal listening systems, and TV listening devices. However, they also like real-time captions at events (a text read-out of what is said when it’s said displayed on a large screen) and other forms of captioning such as rear-window captions at movies and TV closed captioning.

Difference in Identity

Culturally Deaf: People who are culturally Deaf find support within their deaf communities and are characterized by their sense of pride. Though their numbers are relatively small, they are a very visible group that garners media attention because of their strong lobbying efforts, language, and cultural identity.

Oral Deaf: People who are oral deaf function in the hearing world with regard to friends, family and employment. They generally do not have close ties to the culturally Deaf community and did not attend a school for the deaf.

Late Deafened: People who are late deafened generally do not have close ties to the culturally Deaf community. They function in the hearing world with regard to friends, family and employment.

Hard of Hearing: People who are hard of hearing function in the hearing world with regard to friends, family, and employment. Many do not know others with a hearing loss. They are characterized by their sense of shame and denial. As a result, they remain “invisible” and often do not get the accommodations they need.

What Do You Think?
Do you agree that people who are hard of hearing can and should learn from people who are culturally Deaf? If not, why not? If yes, what’s the best way to do this?