Deaf/Hearing Cultural Identity Paradigms: Modification of the Deaf Identity Development Scale

Abstract

The Deaf Identity Development Scale (Glickman, 1993) was modified to include hearing individuals and examine how hearing and deaf adults identify themselves. Statistical analysis based on 244 deaf, hard-of-hearing, and hearing respondents revealed a significant interaction between hearing status of self and parents on the hearing, marginal, and immersion scales of the modified version but not on the bicultural scale. Codas are more marginalized, less immersed, and similarly 'hearing' in comparison to deaf persons with deaf parents. Hard-of-hearing respondents with deaf parents endorse more hearing values and fewer deaf values in comparison to deaf counterparts and also appear to be more marginalized. There were no significant differences between deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals with hearing parents. Compared to hearing respondents with hearing parents, deaf counterparts were more marginalized, more 'hearing,' and equally 'deaf.' Strong professional affiliation with the deaf community resulted in scores that differed significantly from those for individuals not as strongly affiliated. We discuss implications for identity development.