Date of Award

1981

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education

College

College of Education and International Services

Program

Counseling Psychology, Ph.D.

First Advisor

Mercedes H. Dyer

Second Advisor

Lyndon G. Furst

Third Advisor

Peter Blitchington

Abstract

Problem

One of the important problems for the handicapped child is whether he can develop an adequate self-concept. This is a significant problem for the hearing-impaired child in a regular school setting. If the development of self-concept is contingent upon the ability to express needs, wants, and desires, what is the self-concept of a child who cannot describe his feelings? The present study attempts to measure the self-concepts of the hearing-impaired students and to compare them to the self-concepts of the hearing students.

Method

The Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale was used to evaluate the self-concepts of 926 students of the Berrien County Day Program for Hearing-Impaired and the Berrien Springs Public Schools. Sixty-nine hearing-impaired and 857 hearing students in grades six through twelve were tested. A t-test was used to compare the means of the hearing-impaired and the hearing for each grade, the middle school, and the high school.

Results

There were no significant differences (p < .05) between the self-concept means for the hearing-impaired and the hearing students. Also, there were no significant differences (p < .05) between the national norm as established by the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale and the means for the hearing-impaired and the hearing students.

Conclusions

The hearing and the hearing-impaired students have self-concepts that are not significantly different. These means are also not significantly different from the national norm as established by the Piers-Harris Children's Self-Concept Scale. The eighth- and ninth-grade hearing students tend to have a higher self-concept with regard to happiness and satisfaction. The eighth- and ninth-grade hearing-impaired students tend to have a higher self-concept with regard to happiness and satisfaction and physical appearance and attitude than the high school hearing-impaired students do. The hearing students and the hearing-impaired students have many self-concept factors that are very similar. The range of the self-concept scores for each group of hearing-impaired and hearing students is similar.

Subject Area

Deaf children; Self-perception in children

DOI

https://dx.doi.org/10.32597/dissertations/1564

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