This research work has been carried out by María Benigna García Fernández, who has worked as an interpreter of sign language in different kind of conferences and events of the deaf community of Granada. Under the direction of Professor Marcelo Carmona Fernández, of the Department of Evolutionary and Education Psichology of the University of Granada, the aim of this doctoral thesis is to “understand” the values, habits and customs which have characterized the “deaf culture”.
“In the last years an evolution to a new concept of deafness has been observed. It is not about persons that are considered as sick but about people who have their own language and a form a community”, García Fernández points out. Deaf persons have been the main figures in this scientific work, eminently qualitative, to show how their believes and ideas about themselves have evolved. It is the first study with these characteristics as all the previous scientific literature was refered to works prepared “from outside the deaf community”.
In-depth interviews have been maintained with eleven representives of the deaf community of Granada in the last years in sign language “for them to communicate properly and help them to explain their feelings”. They were recorded in video and their transcription was revised by other experts. Regardless of the age, sex and other variables, this work proves that deaf persons are very aware of the importance of their language. In this sense, “they demand things such as subtitled TV programs and interpreters in public centres”.
Normality, segregation
Questions such as information, education and work access are limited by the lack of public awareness. “This thesis can be included in the growing trend of recognition of different sort of minorities that is taking place in our society and which allows as to access to other reality-dimensions”, the thesis´ director says. And he adds: “Treating them with supposed normality (without interpeters and without an approach to their culture), we are producing segregation”.
Reference: Prof. Marcelo Carmona Fernández.
Phone number: 616 934875.
E-mail: mcarmona@ugr.es.
María Benigna García Fernández.
Phone number: 958 256657.
