Deaf People's Coping Strategies in an Everyday Employment Context

My PhD is inspired by both disability studies and feminist perspectives on labour market structures for several reasons. The existing research on deaf people and their experience of work is often focused on problems, issues, and experiences of lack/deficiency: lack of accessibility, poor communication with colleges and surrounding society, high levels of unemployment or underemployment. The data are often statistics and remain un-theorized; there is little qualitative data. Although it is important data, especially on a political level, they do not provide much information on how deaf people navigate and strategize career progress and advancement. Furthermore, they do not shed light on creative and useful coping strategies for facing structural discrimination and (audist) micro-aggressions. My research aims to change this. In the PhD, I will contribute to the transformation of deaf studies research by suggesting how to benefit from other studies on minority workers and employment and combine deaf studies with theoretical concepts from these fields. One example is that both gender and disability research have analysed how minority employees (women or disabled people) use different strategies for coping with work life (Church et al 2007, Taub et al 2004, Benschop et al 2011, Bird et al 2011) and how this effects culture and dynamics in the work place. Hiding and disclosing strategies are frequently mentioned among disability studies (Kafer 2016 ) Price et al 2017). When the disabled employee has either a visible or invisible disability, he/she might often choose to hide the disability by not meeting customers face to face and instead interacting through phone calls or emails (Church et al. 2007) This points in a different direction than recent studies on deaf people’s employment experience such as Friedner (2013) showing how the neo-liberal labour market also produces disability as value. Based on my qualitative study of deaf-led businesses in Denmark I propose, in line with Friedner’s argument around value, that the traditional theorisation of disability/deafness as stigma should be expanded to bring attention to questions of value, agency and coping strategies and explore how deaf people navigate and experience their opportunities and positions in labour market with ambivalences. The Major Review Report is based on a scoping study which is conducted by a focus group with British deaf people who are self-employed or own business (with several employees). Among the 7 participants 4 are female and 3 are male. The 4 females are all self-employed and do not employ other people. 3 of them do not specifically target at deaf markets. 2 of the 3 male

In the PhD, I will contribute to the transformation of deaf studies research by suggesting how to benefit from other studies on minority workers and employment and combine deaf studies with theoretical concepts from these fields. One example is that both gender and disability research have analysed how minority employees (women or disabled people) use different strategies for coping with work life (Church et al 2007, Taub et al 2004, Benschop et al 2011, Bird et al 2011 and how this effects culture and dynamics in the work place. Hiding and disclosing strategies are frequently mentioned among disability studies (Kafer 2016 ) Price et al 2017). When the disabled employee has either a visible or invisible disability, he/she might often choose to hide the disability by not meeting customers face to face and instead interacting through phone calls or emails (Church et al. 2007) This points in a different direction than recent studies on deaf people's employment experience such as Friedner (2013) showing how the neo-liberal labour market also produces disability as value.

Based on my qualitative study of deaf-led businesses in Denmark I propose, in line with
Friedner's argument around value, that the traditional theorisation of disability/deafness as stigma should be expanded to bring attention to questions of value, agency and coping strategies and explore how deaf people navigate and experience their opportunities and positions in labour market with ambivalences.
The Major Review Report is based on a scoping study which is conducted by a focus group with British deaf people who are self-employed or own business (with several employees). Among the 7 participants 4 are female and 3 are male. The 4 females are all self-employed and do not employ other people. 3 of them do not specifically target at deaf markets. 2 of the 3 male

Presentation Transcript
(Slide 1) Hello. I'm Mette and I'm from Denmark. I'm doing my PhD at Heriot Watt University in Scotland under two departments -the Business and Employment department, and the Deaf Studies department. They both underpin my research. My research focuses on deaf people's coping strategies and everyday experiences in employment. I decided to look at their strategies, because during the literature review I found that many studies had recurrently focused on deaf people having barriers in both getting jobs, and even when they have a job, they still undergo many barriers in their everyday life. I wondered how they coped with that. Work life plays a big role in our life. We work forty hours a week and that is a lot. My PhD research has been narrowed down to focus on deaf people who established their own business. Self-employment or entrepreneurship is one of the strategies that deaf people seem to use to access the labour market. I became interested in exploring how having their own business affected their everyday life strategies in navigating the labour market. That is what my presentation will be about.
(Slide 2) I want to say that ideas from critical disability studies are important. Deaf studies and disability studies have mentioned things that help me see different perspectives on how disabled people navigate daily life experiences. Deaf studies is a separate discipline, but disability studies inspired me to understand the various navigation strategies. From studies of other minority groups' strategies, we can elicit different coping strategies in employment contexts. I'll later present some of the strategies. Ok, my PhD focuses on deaf owned businesses in a neo-liberal context. Interestingly, I chatted with an interpreter here, who told me that the U.S. has for a long time appreciated neo-liberal settings while Europe is currently shifting to this. Many areas of employment in Europe tend to rely on government funds, but that is changing now. The labour market is getting more privatized, but they differ between the countries. Now, I would like to share how I frame my research.
(Slide 3) You may know the fable about the fox and the stork. The fox invited the stork over for dinner and started cooking soup. The stork was unable to eat because it was in a shallow bowl. The fox licked everything clean. I see that fable as a metaphor for the structures of the labour market in that they create an unequal context for disabled people. Besides, the stork and the fox have their own individual experiences which also are important elements in exploring how disabled people experience the labour market. It is essential to understand both the structures and the individual experiences in the labour market.
(Slide 4) A researcher from the UK, Kendall, has explored deaf people and their experiences of work by applying the audism concept. Her research shows how oppressive structures in work contexts affect deaf people. There are four levels of audist structures. First, as you already know, there are linguistic disadvantages. Sign language is a minority language, and it becomes the deaf person's responsibility to handle language issues. Secondlyoh, back to the first, another aspect of language is small talk and the access to information; deaf people face considerable barriers in that area. Secondly, the identity disadvantage. What does identity mean? What does identity mean? It's a complicated concept, one that might find similarities in gender studies. Studies have shown that when women go into the male dominated workplaces, especially in fields like engineering, STEM, women tend to struggle with their identity physically and how others perceive them and their bodies, socially as well. It's similar to deaf people who go into the hearing world. They may feel like they have disadvantages as deaf bodies compared to nondisabled individuals. Thirdly, in their upbringings and the knowledge, they build up as a deaf person, often the surrounding society finds them to be somewhat outcasts -I don't mean that they see themselves that way, but others often perceive them as less valuable. Fourthly, the wider society's views of disabled people can influence their daily lives. So, these structures are a bit old, from 1999. There have been changes since then in deaf studies which have opened up for more diverse perspectives. I'll share one example from deaf studies which shows new insights in how to understand deaf people's navigation and everyday experiences in work. How they are related to their surrounding social structures.
(Slide 5) Maybe you know a deaf American anthropologist, Michele Friedner -I think her name sign is thisoh, it's on the temple, okay. She went to India to research what working lives for deaf people in India looked like. I found her work very interesting because Michelle did her research throughout the country while it was going through changes. At the time, the system in place was set up for deaf people to get jobs from the government. In the United States, the government must employ a certain percentage of disabled workers. India had that system for a long time until it changed recently. The government is now less and less responsible for giving jobs to deaf people, and it is more and more implicit. Deaf people now have to do it themselves. That's one example. Michelle's research in India found that coffee shops often employed deaf people. Michelle also found that discourses on disabled people had changed in the neoliberal context, from negative views on disability until being valued in the neoliberal labour market. Employing disabled people benefitted coffee shops. It is also connected with Joseph Murray and Maartje De Meulder who spoke of how sign language helped shops here like Starbucks. Michele linked this as a phenomenon where employing disabled people appeals to an affective economy, which benefits shops. People will come into the shop and see Deaf people working, and see that the shop has social accountability, which they appreciate, and so they come back again and again. In this way, they have affective economics that lead to benefits.
(Slide 6) So, it's interesting because she also studied what deaf people's perceptions of working in those coffee shops were and if they were positive. She found that it is complicated, because it could become redundant working at a coffee shop every day, having to plaster on a smile for customers. It could get demoralizing for them in the long term. So, it wasn't always positive. They often were alone in their workplaces with no other deaf coworkers. It's interesting to see how there are multiple layers to this, especially within different countries, systems, and structures.

(Slide 7)
In other minority studies, there is research on employment and lives, and how people cope with everyday living. An example can be found in feminist studies, which has spanned at least 40 years. They have examined how women get promotions. Women going into the workplace have to fight more to move up the ladder at work. It's more complicated for women, because those positions are often held by men. So, there are different strategies, such as humor. Women might say they're "mothers" of younger employees, and they have different ways of dealing with such barriers. Many women report having to work extra hard. They have to show that they're productive because women are seen as less productive. Their role is more associated with e.g. caring duties. Since feminist research started, there has been a better understanding of the inequality in the labour market. Another example is from studies on gay men's work experiences. Men are generally thought of as masculine and having an easier time moving up the ladder. But men, e.g. many gay men, also have their struggles. For example, there may be masculine ways of talking, even sexist and oppressive, that often will repulse gay men. So, they have to find coping strategies. Some gay men might bring in a "wife" to hide their sexual orientation, and in order to mobilise upwards at work. So, oppression in different shapes exists in their everyday lives on the job, and they have to navigate them.
(Slide 8) Some of these findings are from disability studies, but I'll only share a few.
(Slide 9) Many studies on employment have found that people will not disclose their disabilities. That repeatedly emerged throughout numerous studies. Disclosing a disability isn't a one-time event for them; they often have to do it daily at different levels. When they meet different people, they have to disclose it each time. So, many disabled people might not disclose their disabilities because it's tiring for them. Not disclosing disability is the hiding strategy. Using this strategy happens on different levels. On the micro-level, they might avoid encountering other people face to face. They resort to using email or the phone to communicate instead. That removes the need to disclose themselves physically. This is a huge problemfor example they get more economically vulnerable, and how can they move up the ladder if they do not go out and meet people? They do not apply or ask for promotions, because they are aware that it will mean http://doi.org/10.3998/15499139.0005.011 Deaf Studies Digital Journal Vol. 5, 2020 5 additional work for them. It also means that many disabled people stay in the same jobs for many years, because they do not get promoted.
(Slide 10) Studies of minority groups show that many use over-achieving as a strategy, to show that they're able-bodied and productive. This over-achieving strategy is used to alter people's perceptions and expectations of what productivity means. This is also true for many women, who feel they have to work extra hard to show that they're as capable as men.
(Slide 11) I met the concept 'homo-sociality' in feminist studies. Homo-sociality is about how men socialise with other men and have their own gendered humor and jokes. Such sociality and talk excludes women. In the same way it can be challenging for deaf people to be in a workplace where they face barriers, being among people who do not have the same bodies like them. Deaf bio-sociality would mean they could be around other deaf people with similar types of talk and humor. However, there are sublevels within the deaf community as deaf people are also gendered, racialised, classified, and sexualised.
(Slide 12) Interestingly, studies have shown that one of the strategies that minorities use to navigate in the labour market is to set up their own business. This includes, for example, various ethnic groups, women, and disabled people. But of course, they have different reasons for setting up their own businesses. Overall reasons can be split in two categories. One is related to recurring negative experiences in the workplace, so they decided to set up a business as an alternativethis is the push factor. The other factor is positive reasons, the pull factor: being excited about establishing a business, where they can gain leadership experience and determine for themselves the environment they work in. These two categories overlap with each other.
(Slide 13) I'm halfway through my PhD, and I did a pilot study in the United Kingdom. But I decided to do the main study in Denmark because I'm from Denmark and I know the system there. There are some differences between the United Kingdom and Denmark. The United Kingdom is a big country, so there's more diversity among the deaf population in the UK. In Denmark, the community is small and more homogenous. As you can see, Danish participants in my study had very similar backgrounds. They are all well-educated, active in politics and sports, and are public figures. Many have confidence in establishing their businesses. They're predominantly white, middle-class men, between 30-50 years old. I collected data by interviewing them and visiting the businesses. I observed them, for a short time. In the following I show some preliminary results from the findings.
(Slide 14) I was interested in looking at deaf-led spaces on a small scale, which still is interrelated with larger scale structures. I explored which ways the larger structures impact their coping strategies. Also, I examined how their own deaf space also affected their strategies. I was interested in deaf people, as I mentioned earlier, with focus on them facing inequality and oppression in language, identity, knowledge, and perceptions by society. But in deaf-led spaces, what did that mean? Did the attitudes become positive, and valued more? What were the values?
(Slide 15) First, during my visits to the businesses, I met some participants who shared that they experienced oppression in their previous work in different ways. For example, direct discrimination: being told by an employer, "No, we don't want you because you're deaf," and having their applications rejected repeatedly. They were fed up with those direct forms of discrimination, and it led them to start up their businesses. Secondly, one participant had a job where he, in his everyday life at work, felt demoralized or demeaned. It was at a deaf workplace, but the managers were hearing. They experienced microaggressions, and it made them leave and set up their businesses. Other participants had never worked in the hearing community and set up their own business right after graduation. However, many shared that during their education, they realized that they weren't a good fit for hearing people. They knew they'd feel deflated by hearing people and would never be understood, so they decided to take over the workplace by creating a business.
(Slide 16) But there are also many positive stories. A lot of them said they had drawbacks, but that the positives were more. They were inspired to establish a business and were excited. Also, many said they had families that were self-employed or had businesses. They thought they should do the same as their family. Going back to what Michelle said about her concept of "deaf development": her analysis of India revealed that many deaf individuals were involved in multilevel marketing sales, also known as pyramid schemes. They thought it'd give them better lives because they could lead the administration of that. It is a part of deaf development. Also, many deaf people are employed in deaf-led businesses. I found that they got those jobs within deaf led businesses because they had a high degree of social capital with other deaf people. Deaf owners often shared similar backgrounds as employees. They're also white, middle-class, similar ages, and it made it easier for the owner to employ thembecause they shared the same social and linguistic capital in the Danish context.
(Slide 17) During the interviews, many deaf owners said having deaf employees was a positive thing. There was a situation where there was a deaf and a hearing applicant. The deaf person was hired even though the hearing person had better qualifications. The deaf owner still preferred to bring in a deaf person because it was more relaxing with direct communication, and easier to train the deaf person as opposed to the hearing person. So, the deaf person was hired.
(Slide 18) Also, another business owner said something interesting. In deaf-led businesses, they hired uneducated deaf people who had never had jobs. But hearing people wouldn't be able to see their skills, and owners of deaf-led businesses in Denmark felt they could see the potential in those individuals. They knew how to encourage uneducated deaf people and empower them to have jobs and earn a living. In that quote, the business owner said hearing people don't know how to work with deaf people, but deaf people know how because they see skills in other deaf people.

(Slide 19)
In regard to communication and networking strategies for deaf-led businesses, most of the strategies listed here come from deaf business owners who are self-employed. They were usually the only person working in their company, so they were a different group than those running interpreting services. In Denmark, many deaf-led businesses specialize in interpreter services and they work in signing spaces. Conversely, these communication strategies came mainly from deaf business owners who didn't work in the sign language interpreting market; they worked in fields such as photography, massage, fashion, and others. Interestingly, many of the owners said interpreters were really crucial to their businesses. Still, they also expected that the hearing customer would meet them halfway, not forcing either party to go the full way and have the sole burden in communication. It should be in the middle of the road, so they can attempt to communicate either through writing or gesturing. Those owners had confidence and were willing to meet them halfway. There were also different strategies of networking with hearing customers to get more customers, such as giving away free services to first-time customers. This wasn't only for the hearing person; it was also for the deaf owner, to see if they could work together or if the deaf person should turn away the client. Regarding networking, it's interesting that many deaf business owners faced barriers in informal networking. They also spoke of more formal network meetings for businesses, and the deaf person would go and benefit significantly from those formal meetings. The last point talks about performative strategies. We often associate business owners with being confident and outgoing -that's how they should be. I think it may be different here in the U.S, but in Denmark, being outgoing and confident might not always be appreciated. It does not fit our values from growing up in a small deaf community, where we value solidarity and equality. So, when someone is pushy and aggressive, it can be seen as provocative. Several deaf business owners shared that they had to learn how to sell themselves, and think differently, like 'look at me'. It was a new challenge for them.
(Slide 20) In Denmark, there's a concept [demonstrates pointy elbows], which doesn't exist in America. But that sign is for being pushy or aggressivefor us Danish people, it's a challenge to be overtly self-confident. While they had a positive outlook and constructions, participants also reproduced negative constructions of deaf people in this study, such as the stigmas of other deaf people. One deaf business owner said that he doesn't aim to employ deaf people because he felt they talk too much. Hearing people will do their work more efficiently. I found that as a stigmatising view of deaf people. It might relate to the fact that the deaf business owner was from an older generation and before setting up his own business had worked in a non-deaf related workplace for many years. It was on a time with an organisational culture where small talk was discouraged. So, changes over time have seen chatting/talking during work time as positive and inspiring, so maybe that has to do with age and generational differences. That's one perspective. Interestingly, the younger business owners I met did not say the same thing.
(Slide 21) Another deaf business owner said he had experienced the differences between hiring deaf and hearing managers. However, he said it wasn't because of their being deaf or hearing per se. Instead, it was because deaf people typically are raised in a small community, so they interact collectively on a problem. It's not customary for deaf people to take over a problem and solve it individually. On the other hand, hearing people grow up in larger communities, so they need to set the agenda and make themselves visible in individualist ways. They will find a problem and identify a solution and say, "Hey, look! I found the problem and I suggest we fix it in this way!" That's how the deaf business owner perceived the difference between the deaf and the hearing ways of solving things. In the business world, it's expected that you follow the hearing way of resolving problems immediately, engaging in sales, calling attention to yourself, and being assertive. Deaf people don't do that in general. So, both communities need to exchange resources and educate each other on different business strategies.
(Slide 22) Some of my discussions with deaf employees who work in deaf-led businesses surprised me. In Denmark, many deaf employees working in deaf led companies worry about whether deafowned businesses will last. They worry that maybe they'll lose jobs when the businesses close down. They have doubts about their everyday lives. It was obvious ontological insecurity regarding their opportunities within the deaf-led interpreting agencies. I did an observation where an employee had a meeting with hearing social workers. Denmark has services for disabled people, such as interpreting services, which are controlled by hearing people. They act very suspicious towards deaf-owned businesses, and their deaf employees, not believing or having trust in their services or work. Many interpreting agencies are deaf-owned and receive funding from the government. Deaf employees and owners said they struggled with how to react to their attitude and actions and how to challenge them.
(Slide 23) In conclusion, let's go back to that picture. Remember the story of the fox and the stork? That story ends with them switching places. The stork invites the fox over for dinner, and the same meal is served, but the stork puts the food in a long, narrow container. The fox is excited about the dinner but realizes on arrival that he will not be able to eat the dinner. The stork laughs and eats it with no problem. I think this has applications to deaf-led businesses; creating our own spaces that are accessible for ourselves in everyday life. But creating deaf-led businesses has issues, such as sustainability -will they be able to survive? And then there is the power of surrounding society. The fox could easily end up eating the stork. We must think about how to make businesses sustainable for deaf people, and in general create opportunities for deaf people to work in deaf spaces.
(Slide 24) That finishes the presentation. All right.