Identity formation of a deaf child with cochlear implantation in early infancy

Abstract

This study is a case report about two deaf students with early infancy cochlear implantation. The participants were in the fifth grade but had different educational evolvements. One was a student at an elementary school integrated in the community, the other was a student at a special education school for the deaf with sign language. They were interviewed about their acceptance of the disability, how they felt about their cochlear implant and their identity of themselves. The interview data were analyzed with a qualitative data analysis method, “SCAT”（Step Coding and Theorization; Otani, 2008, 2011）. In this case study, it is seen that both students had a healthy self-esteem and good feelings about their cochlear implant, due to their good communicational home environments. Also, their mothers had a positive influence on their acceptance of the disability and their identity formation.