Perceptions on fatherhood experiences of fathers who have children with hearing loss in an early intervention

This phenomenologically designed study aimed to describe perceptions on fatherhood experiences of the fathers who have children with a hearing loss. Seven fathers were the participants of the study. Their children had severe to profound hearing loss and aged between 0-3 years. They all attended the same early intervention programme. Data were collected by semi-structured interviews, reflective journals and document review. The interviews were transcribed and coded. The phenomenological analysis of the data revealed 91 codes, 13 sub-themes and 5 themes. The findings of the study indicated that the fathers generally perceive their roles and responsibilies no different than the fathers of hearing children. However they stress the importance of hearing technologies and economic issues related to the maintanence of them. They also explained their anxiety and precautions related to their child's future. They explained positive aspects and benefits of the early intervention programme they attended. They generally stated their satisfaction of the programme, but on the other hand some fathers mentioned the need for more convinient appointment times considering their working hours, more information on educational options related to the school education of their child, support from other families and occasional psychological counselling. This study were hoped to contribute to the literature on fatherhood experiences and perceptions of the fathers with children who have hearing loss and to provide some insight to teachers, other professionals who work on the field and families. Keywords: Fathers, Hearing loss, Experiences on fatherhood, Phenomenology.