"Can I Speak to the Data I Cannot Hear?" An Autoethnography on Deafness Within Qualitative Research

• In Event: Listening for Methodology

Abstract

This presentation is an autoethnographic investigation in my role as a researcher who happens to be deaf. How do I position myself as a deaf researcher within this field? What was does the institution of qualitative research hinder my ability as a researcher, and how do I fight for and maintain agency over myself in this field? As I share the situations I encountered that questioned whether or not I could even do research, and then caused me to question and assert my agency as a researcher who is deaf, I began to problematize what research looks like and how to assert its validity within the confines of my hearing loss.

Author

• Sara Kersten Parrish, University of Nevada - Reno