ABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to uncover and describe psycholinguistic and sociocognitive factors facilitating effective reading by signing adults who are profoundly deaf and do not use hearing technology. The sample comprised four groups, each consisting of 15 adults, for a total of 60 participants. The four groups were deaf high-achieving, deaf low-achieving, hearing high-achieving, and hearing low-achieving. Measurements included a language background interview and think-aloud reading discussion. Through the lens of a grounded theory approach, the conditions that facilitate effective reading were uncovered-by coding and categorizing themes, relating the codes and categories, and determining a central theme. It was found that there are similarities and differences in how deaf and hearing people process phonological codes and conceptualize language, and that access to varied instructional strategies and meaningful language experiences is an overarching theme in effective reading.
Subject(s)
Deafness/psychology , Grounded Theory , Persons With Hearing Impairments/psychology , Reading , Sign Language , Adult , Auditory Perception , Checklist , Comprehension , Cues , Educational Status , Female , Humans , Male , Metacognition , Middle Aged , Phonetics , Qualitative Research , Semantics , Young AdultABSTRACT
The purpose of the study was to identify factors related to reading comprehension, and to compare similarities and differences in the reading processes of deaf and hearing adults. The sample included four groups, each consisting of 15 adults. The groups were identified as (a) deaf high-achieving readers, (b) deaf low-achieving readers, (c) hearing high-achieving readers, and (d) hearing low-achieving readers. Measurement instruments included a demographic form along with assessments of reading comprehension, phonological skills, and metacognition, the latter of which contained both a making-inferences measure and a think-aloud discussion with a reading strategies checklist. Results indicated that deaf high-achieving readers performed similarly to hearing high-achieving readers, except for phonological skills, and that for all participants, phonological skills and metacognition were related to reading comprehension skills.