Research on Deafness and Higher Education Discussion Based on an Overview of Research

The research conducted mainly by researchers at NTID has contributed in an important and valuable way to our understanding of the problems involved in this issue. However, about 90 percent of hearing-impaired students are attending institutions outside Gallaudet or NTID, what is needed is knowledge about the conditions for the deaf and hard-of-hearing students in mainstreamed colleges and universities. From what is known about the changes regarding labor market, demography, and educational system the lack of knowledge about deaf and hard-of-hearing students in this setting seems serious. The research task should be to find the social mechanisms that underlie the educational process in terms of integration and attrition. The mechanisms in motion could be found if we focus on the Deaf World and the Hearing World and the Educational Community

Persistence and Academic and Social Integration of Hearing-Impaired Students in Postsecondary Education: A Review of Research

The research described here falls into two categories. The first category focuses on outcome, the secondary category focuses on process. The overview includes 27 studies, 14 in the first category and 13 In the second category. Mainstreamed students seem to be more prepared for postsecondary education. Some studies do not rank communication skills when entering the college as among the most important for college performance and the decision to withdraw, and some do. A few studies indicate no correlation between academic performance and the decision to stay or withdraw. Many of the studies support the idea that this interaction is of great importance for the outcome. Regarding social interaction we can conclude that it is an important mechanism in work However, it is extremely difficult to state that this or that factor is more important than others and the most important conclusion which could be drawn from the studies is to stress the importance of taking a holistic view of the issue

Relocation and Health Effects on the Elderly A Commented Research Review

This paper summarizes and comments on the research on the relationship between relocation and morbidity/mortality among the elderly. In the present state of research there are not sufficient grounds for the drawing of general conclusions. On the other hand there is good reason for assuming that relocation under certain circumstances and for certain groups does lead to ill-health and to an increase in mortality. There is a lack of studies devoted to systematic investigation of the influence of such conditions. Various designs and methods have been used, and this reduces comparability. There is also a lack of theoretically guided empirical investigations. Research on relocation among the elderly needs to include recognition of the importance of the meaning of home for the elderly, and of the concept of control

Importance of “Process Evaluation” in Audiological Rehabilitation: Examples from Studies on Hearing Impairment

The main focus of this paper is to discuss the importance of “evaluating the process of change” (i.e., process evaluation) in people with disability by studying their lived experiences. Detailed discussion is made about “why and how to investigate the process of change in people with disability?” and some specific examples are provided from studies on patient journey of persons with hearing impairment (PHI) and their communication partners (CPs). In addition, methodological aspects in process evaluation are discussed in relation to various metatheoretical perspectives. The discussion has been supplemented with relevant literature. The healthcare practice and disability research in general are dominated by the use of outcome measures. Even though the values of outcome measures are not questioned, there seems to be a little focus on understanding the process of change over time in relation to health and disability. We suggest that the process evaluation has an additional temporal dimension and has applications in both clinical practice and research in relation to health and disability

Participant views on involvement in a trial of social recovery cognitive behaviour therapy

Background The PRODIGY trial (Prevention of long term social disability amongst young people with emerging psychological difficulties, ISRCTN47998710) is a pilot trial of social recovery cognitive behaviour therapy (SRCBT). Aims The PRODIGY qualitative substudy aimed to (a) explore individual experiences of participating in the pilot randomised, controlled trial (recruitment, randomisation, assessment) andinitial views of therapy, and (b) to explore perceived benefits of taking part in research v. ethical concerns and potential risks. Method Qualitative investigation using semi-structured interviews with thematic analysis. Results Analysis revealed participant experiences around the key themes of acceptability, disclosure, practicalities, altruism and engagement. Conclusions Participants in both trial arms perceived themselves as gaining benefits from being involved in the study, above and beyond the intervention. This has implications for the design of future research and services for this client group, highlighting the importance of being flexible and an individualised approach as key engagement tools

Improving Early Detection of Refugee-Related Stress Symptoms: Evaluation of an Inter-Professional and Inter-Cultural Skills Training Course in Sweden

Twenty-three of 26 participants, mainly women from six local agencies involved in the reception of refugees, completed a university course titled “Refugee-related stress and mental health—local cooperation”, which was spread over seven days in 2011. The course was based on evidence and clinical experience and was commissioned to serve as competency training by Stockholm County Council and Södertälje Municipality. It received funding from the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare. It was a continuation of an earlier one-week full-time university course from 2010 with the same title. As a result of a new law relating to refugee reception, which led to organizational change, the participants requested a continuation of the original course. The learning objectives were met (5.4 on a 6-point scale; 1 = strongly disagree, 6 = strongly agree). The general assessment of the course as a whole by the participants was 5.7 (on a 6-point scale, 1 = very unsatisfied, 6 = very satisfied). The participants thought that their skills had increased, and their perception was that they had significantly better control of their work situation following completion of the course. The most important findings were that participants from different agencies at the local level: (1) perceived that they had developed the sense that there was a local inter-cultural and inter-professional inter-agency collaboration in the reception of newly arrived refugees and (2) will continue efforts to stabilize and develop this together. This method of teaching, in terms of skills training, is not a “quick fix.” It is a process, and it needs support from those in power in order to continue

Expectations, visions and sense of empowerment: in the face of a vocational rehabilitation process for people with psychiatric disabilities

The aim of this study is to reveal the meaning some people with psychiatric disabilities assigned to important experiences related to long periods of participation restrictions owing to unemployment and sick leave. The data comprise open-ended interviews with eight informants. A hermeneutic approach together with a comparative analysis was used to analyze the data. The results showed six types of mechanisms important for the outcome of the rehabilitation process: support, understanding, time, control, self-image and vision of the future. Our results indicate that environmental factors such as experience of support and understanding of professionals and time-efficacy seemed to have a great effect on the individuals' attitudes concerning the activities and measures they expected to carry out during their coming rehabilitation. These experiences seemed to affect their belief in their own abilities, their sense of control, and their belief in successful performance. Theories about empowerment closely related to social emotions like pride and shame are also discussed in an attempt to deepen the understanding of the studied phenomena

Identity as a causal power : contextualising entrepreneurs' concerns

We propose a critical realist-informed conception of entrepreneurial identity – the personal power to create a new venture. Although most people have the power to become an entrepreneur, not everyone can, or is motivated to, realize that potential. Other countervailing powers – personal, material and social – can constrain, or discourage, action. Utilizing a stratified, emergent ontology, we contextualize entrepreneurial identity within three analytical orders – natural, practical and social. We distinguish personal identity, the set of concerns in the three orders that motivate action, from social identity, the roles we commit to in society. While entrepreneurial identity is a type of social identity, the underlying concerns that motivate commitment to an entrepreneurial role cannot be reduced to social interaction alone. The concept of internal conversation is used to theorize the connection of entrepreneurial motivation, context and behaviour. We draw on qualitative data from three UK-based disabled entrepreneurs to demonstrate the value of our framework

The employer's perspective: employment of people with disabilities in wage subsidized employments

The aim of this article is to examine employers' perspectives of the conditions of employment of people with disabilities within a context of wage subsidies. Employers in different workplaces were interviewed, and the interviews were analysed according to qualitative content analysis (Graneheim and Lundman 2004). The results show that four factors – attitude, matching, economic incentives and accommodations – are important for the employment of people with disabilities within a context of wage subsidies. Positive earlier experiences of people with disabilities serve as one of the reasons employers are willing to consider people with disabilities for jobs, but for hiring to take place, there must also be a match between the right person and the right job. Wage subsidies are seen, within this context, as an incentive to hire people who have reduced work capacity; accommodations are seen as necessary for the successful implementation of such hiring decisions. This knowledge can be applied in the design of support measures for unemployed people with disabilities