Døv og kvinne i et nytt land

This Ph.D. project is a qualitative study that provides insight into the lives of deaf female immigrants in Norway. The project is qualitative both in theoretical approach, scientific positioning and in data handling. From a social constructivist point of view, the study examines how national integration measures, for example municipal introduction programs, work for deaf female participants. This group has been given little attention in previous academic studies, and the project makes an important knowledge contribution about a minority, from a minority. The data material seeks to identify opportunities and obstacles in the system responsible for the inclusion of deaf immigrants in Norwegian society.

The project is also part of work package 3 in the DEPICT project at HVL (https://www.hvl.no/forsking/prosjekt/depict/). This part of the DEPICT project examines deaf female immigrants' communication strategies in signed interaction, with a focus on the use of depiction.

This project is a study that provides insight into the lives of deaf female immigrants in Norway. The project seeks to understand and gain insight into the participants' experiences of establishing a life in Norway, and has a particular focus on the participant's attendance at municipal introduction programs.

The project is qualitative both in theoretical approach, scientific positioning and in data handling. The study is based on the participants' reflections regarding their life situation, and the project draws on Narratology as a methodological tool. The project has a multi-method approach to data collection, where individual in-depth interviews and observations in fieldwork at various introductory programs are used to provide empirical data. The aim is to contribute with knowledge about this minority by both examining the participants' narratives and the context in which they are given.

The project's preliminary main research question is;

What forms of formation occur when deaf women participate in municipal introduction programmes, and which factors influence the formation processes?

Preliminary secondary research questions are:

What do deaf, female participants in municipal introduction programs say about their educational situation, and which factors are said to influence their educational situation?

What experiences do deaf women have in establishing a new life in Norway, and what can we learn from these experiences?

The project is a qualitative study. The research questions are explored throug participant observation in fieldwork at Norwegian introductory programs, as well as individual in-depth interviews with atendees at these programs.

After data collection, the finishing work consist of rewriting field notes and transcribing interviews. These documents are used in further analysis. The analysis is done through paradigmatic analysis of narratives. Here, the participants' fragmented stories are put together and coordinated into a whole, which summarily describes the participants' experiences of the topics raised in the research questions.