Abstract
M.A.
The study presents a narrative exploration of the potential offered by SCUBA (Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus) diving as a therapeutic wilderness adventure context bridging Deaf and hearing experiences.
It is structured as an emerging narrative in three parts.
Part I explores the philosophical and theoretical literature with a view to providing an overview of the epistemological frameworks against which the study is presented and which could result in a sense of tension between modern/post modern discourses within the reader/author.
Part II reviews the current literature pertaining to: Deafness and Deaf/hearing relations, contrasting the medical-pathological perspective of Deafness with a socio-cultural model and examining perceptions regarding the development of a Deaf cultural identity, the articulation of meaning and culturally affirmative proposals with regard to the integration of Deaf and hearing experiences; adventure, wilderness programmes and practices as agents of therapeutic change with particular reference to the Deaf and other disabled communities; and the potential application of SCUBA diving and the underwater environment as metaphorically different agents of therapeutic change and particularly as they relate to Deaf/hearing relations.
Part III attempts to provide a multi-levelled dialogical space for the voices of Deaf and hearing participants in the study to emerge and reflect on their lived experiences of their participation in a SCUBA diver course and its potential impact on lived experiences and personal narratives and metaphors.
The study is written as a post modern text and explores Bakhtin’s (1973) theories of dialogism as a basis for presenting a polyphonic text.