Problems experienced by individuals in institutions tend to be hidden from the
public gaze. This is so for inmates of prisons where regulations and bureaucratic
structure conceal the daily life situation of prisoners from public view. Anonymity and
concealment are enhanced by the widespread misperception of prisoners as an
homogenous group. As a result, problems of vulnerable groups, such as people with
disabilities, can be ignored. One such group is prisoners with impaired hearing.
This descriptive study utilized a multidisciplinary approach to investigate the
problems experienced by prisoners within the context of social control. Drawing from
selected literature in health, sociology and criminology, the theoretical framework
merges the labelling perspective [interactionism] with macro-level theories of social
control.
The study provides, for the first time, an examination of the percentage,
degree and social import of hearing loss in federal prisoners in the Pacific Region of
the Correctional Service of Canada. Through the use of survey, audiometric
measurement, and interview techniques, an examination was undertaken of the
presence and implications of partial hearing loss in inmates of federal penitentiaries
in British Columbia. Interview subjects were identified through hearing testing of
volunteers in eight federal penitentiaries. Data were gathered through interviews with prisoners with impaired hearing, a comparison group of prisoners with normal
hearing, and a selection of custodians. Of 114 prisoners screened, 69% had some
degree of impaired hearing, often previously unidentified. Custodians, 86% of the
time, labelled behaviours characteristic of the hard of hearing as deviant, and often
aggressive, behaviours. Prisoner accounts revealed that failure to test hearing at time
of incarceration has harmful effects on performance in programmes and encounters
with the justice system. A social activist approach is recommended, to address
structural inequalities among prisoners and barriers for prisoners in general.
This work indicates that lower-class, lower-status persons may be more
susceptible to negative labelling. Prisoners with partial hearing loss, due to the often
invisible nature of their condition, are particularly vulnerable to negative labelling.
Study recommendations include: 1] Routine hearing screening of all prisoners
at time of incarceration. 2] Education of custodians to understand behaviours and
communication needs of persons with impaired hearing. 3] A partnership effort
between correctional services, the disabled consumer group, and professionals, to
improve the situation of prisoners who are hard of hearing.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:BVAU.2429/8780 |
| Date | 05 1900 |
| Creators | Dahl, Marilyn Olive |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Relation | UBC Retrospective Theses Digitization Project [http://www.library.ubc.ca/archives/retro_theses/] |
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