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Hearing Impairment and

the Deaf Movement

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By and large, the deaf culture rejects terms

related to hearing impairment i.e. “hearing impaired” , although it can be argued that the

phrase adequately describes the condition.

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Terms such as “deaf” and “hard of hearing”

are preferred since these words do not insinuate that people unable to

hear are handicapped or “less than” in some

manner.

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This critical difference in nomenclature is but one of the significant outcomes of the social movement known as deaf culture. One of the movements core principles is that deafness is a unique human experience rather than a form of disability.

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There are two distinct types of

hearing impairment, or

deafness: conductive

hearing loss and sensorineural hearing loss.

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The former is a result of physical

damage or improper operation

of the pathways that carry sound

from the outer ear to the eardrum and through the middle

ear.

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Sensorineural hearing loss tends to be related

to the inner ear, the cochlea in particular,

which is responsible for the conversion of

conduction, or physical vibrations, into neural

signals, which are electrical in nature.

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Deaf people are incredibly inclusive and

value the power, camaraderie and support of the group. The ability to sign is a unifying force

for the culture and is celebrated in a number

of ways.