Examination of social cohesion of deaf women

Deaf people have basic accessibility problems which are depending on the nature of their hearing loss so they are deprived of the skills of understanding speech and expressing what they think to a certain extent. The research was conducted with women with deafness who had social cohesion problems due to special needs and the effect of gender. The research was designed with a mixed model in which quantitative and qualitative research methods were used together. The study was conducted with 30 deaf women. With 15 of the 30 deaf women were also depth interviews. In the quantitative part of the study, Craig Disability Assessment and Reporting Technique Short Form and the questionnaire prepared by the researcher were used as data collection tools, while semi-structured questions were used in qualitative interviews. Sign language was used to communicate with women. According to the findings obtained from the research; It was found that the scores obtained from the scale did not differ according to the age, marital status, special education status and the frequency of participating in cultural activities, the level of education, the frequency of participation in social activities, the degree of hearing, and the status of being a member of a club differ according to the sub-dimensions of the scale. In qualitative findings, difficulties affecting social cohesion in communication, education, employment and health were identified. The most important suggestions obtained as a result of the research; making sign language widespread and increasing awareness in the field.