Abstract
This project focuses on improving the cultural competency that social workers have with Deaf clients. With few materials about the American Deaf community geared towards social workers, there may not be sufficient resources for social workers to develop the cultural competency necessary to provide the best services. It is important to understand social workers’ perspectives towards and experience with Deaf people in order to assess the need for continuing education in the field. This study asks the question, what do social workers need to know in order to work with Deaf clients and interpreters?
The initial hypothesis was that social workers in Texas would have negative to neutral attitudes towards Deaf people, as a result of their lack of contact with that population. Social workers from Texas were recruited to participate in an online anonymous survey that included the Attitudes to Deafness Scale developed by Cooper, Rose, and Mason (2004). The results of the survey showed that social workers in Texas actually have neutral to positive views of the Deaf community. While it was not possible to identify a definitive reason why this might be the case, the overwhelming majority of social workers surveyed voiced a need for more training focusing on the American Deaf community. In response to the desire for increased knowledge of this population, a learning module for social workers was produced, which allows them to earn continuing education units.
Exit Requirement
Professional Project
Date of Award
Fall 12-10-2014
Degree Name
Master of Arts in Interpreting Studies
Committee Chair
Pamela Cancel
Committee Member
Erin Trine
Committee Member
Angela Nonaka
Keywords
Deaf culture, social work, interpreter
Language
eng
Type (DCMI Terms)
Text
Subject Categories
Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education | Other Languages, Societies, and Cultures | Social Work
Recommended Citation
Ulloa, A. W. (2014). Social workers’ cultural competency with deaf clients: a continuing education module (master's thesis). Western Oregon University, Monmouth, Oregon. Retrieved from https://digitalcommons.wou.edu/theses/14
Rights Statement
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Rights Statement URL
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Additional Files
PDF-A Social Workers_ Cultural Competency with Deaf Clients_ A Continui.pdf (464 kB)PDF/A Version
Included in
Bilingual, Multilingual, and Multicultural Education Commons, Other Languages, Societies, and Cultures Commons, Social Work Commons
Rights Statement
In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
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