Empowering Sign Language Connections

Deaf Indian Women in Associations

Bibliographic Data

ID24230587
AuthorsRannveig Frøseth Sinkaberg (0009-0006-4904-0259)
Year2026
Volume28
Issue1
Pages479-492
Publication date2026-09-21
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueScandinavian Journal of Disability Research (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1501-7419 • E-ISSN: 1745-3011
PublisherStockholm University Press (PUBLISHER • SE)
DOI10.16993/sjdr.1450
OpenAlexW7213940485
LanguageEN
References cited21

This article examines the role of deaf associations in facilitating the social participation of deaf Indian women. Drawing on qualitative ethnographic fieldwork, it explores how deaf Indian women engage with deaf associations and how sign language shapes their opportunities for societal participation. A reflexive thematic analysis resulted in three themes: communication through sign language and social interaction; deaf space; and deaf clubs as representations of heterogeneity among deaf people. The findings indicate that deaf associations foster empowerment, a sense of belonging and access to network resources for deaf women. These associations function as deaf spaces in which social and cultural capital can be built through shared communication, mutual support and collective identity. The article contributes to scholarship on deaf women’s associative participation by foregrounding the role of sign language and deaf associations, and by highlighting how marginalisation may be transformed into empowerment and enhanced societal participation.

Collective identity · Cultural capital · deaf associations · deaf women · Empowerment · marginalization · sense of belonging · Sign language · Social interaction · Social participation · Disability Education and Employment · Disability Rights and Representation · Hearing Impairment and Communication

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Open DOIOpen Access