By Michel Witter
During my PhD project (begun in September 2021), I am investigating the potential of sensory augmentation technology for bridging the sensory gap between deaf and hearing people. This sensory gap occurs when sensory differences between individuals cause unrecognizable cues or an absence of relevant cues needed to support the shared experience and the mutual sharing of meanings.
At the Sencity Festival (17 September 2022), I conducted a study in order to better understand the deaf and hearing sensory gap. The method I used is based on the emBODY research tool1 which provides a way for participants to express their felt experience. The figure below shows a gender neutral depiction of a human body, where the participant can mark or highlight where they feel the current experience in/on their body. Next to the picture, there is room for the participant to offer more information about where and how this experience is felt.
In order to understand the sensory gap, participant pairs with different “abilities”, e.g., a deaf person together with a hearing person, were assigned a specific artwork at the festival and asked to go there and use the inquiry form to describe their individual experience. Each was additionally asked to express how they thought the other participant experienced the given artwork.
Most visitors who stopped by my booth at the festival responded positively to my research and its goals. People were also enthusiastic about participating in my study. The results of the study still need to be analyzed. However, I can report that despite all of my preparations, I learned to give more consideration to social dynamic behaviors at such events. For example, asynchronous visits to my booth by groups or pairs of hearing vs. deaf attendees made it hard to form pairs of people with different abilities.
Still, the Sencity Festival was a welcome opportunity for me to conduct the first study for my PhD research. I encourage everyone to visit the next Sencity event on the 25th of March in 2023, when the Sencity Festival will mark its 20th(!) anniversary. Please, take a look at www.sencity.today and follow their socials announcing the next event. While awaiting the publication of my prospective paper, more information about my research can be found at https://www.avans.nl/over-avans/nieuws-en-pers/nieuwsberichten/detail/2021/09/stimulans-onderzoek-naar-overbruggen-communicatiekloof-tussen-doven-en-niet-doven-door-sensory-augmentation.
1Nummenmaa, L., Glerean, E., Hari, R., & Hietanen, J. K. (2014). Bodily maps of emotions. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(2), 646–651. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1321664111