Social-Emotional Experiences for Young Male Adults who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to provide an in-depth understanding of the social-emotional experiences in connection with language and communication development for Saudi individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) who use spoken language as their main method of communication. The following research questions guided this study:

Q1 What are the perceptions of Saudi individuals who are DHH and use spoken language regarding their social-emotional experiences currently and during their (K-12) education?

Q2 What educational practices did teachers deliver and how did those educational practices promote social-emotional experiences for Saudi individuals who are DHH and who use spoken language?

Q3 How does the language and communication skills of Saudi Individuals who are DHH and who use spoken language affect their social and emotional engagement?

Twelve participants were interviewed to investigate the phenomenon of their social-emotional experiences as people who are DHH. Seven themes were identified from analyzing the participants’ interviews. Two themes related to overall perceptions of social-emotional experiences for individuals who are DHH: (a) internal perspectives, and (b) external perspectives. Three themes were connected to teachers, and school practices related to social-emotional experiences: (a) the lack of social-emotional programs, (b) related social-emotional practices, and (c) quality of programs. The final two themes spoke about the connection between language and communication and social-emotional engagement: (a) spoken language and vocabulary, and (b) communication. Discussion of these findings provide more details about factors that related to individuals’ social emotional experiences at home, school, and their social activities within Saudi Arabian society. Furthermore, the implications of the practice from this study are directed at four groups: individuals who are DHH, families of individuals who are DHH, teachers of individuals who are DHH, and associations for individuals with disabilities. Finally, limitations and suggestions for future research offer a foundation for researchers to conduct future studies focused on the social-emotional experiences of individuals who are DHH. I hope from this study to increase the knowledge of social-emotional development for individuals who are DHH in Saudi Arabia.