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Communication with the handicapped : case study of communication styles and practices between...

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Communication with the handicapped : case study of communication styles and practices between handicapped and non[-]handicapped citizens / Elizabeth Ethier

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Identifier	Thesis 1616
Author	Ethier, Elizabeth
Title	Communication with the handicapped : case study of communication styles and practices between handicapped and non[-]handicapped citizens / Elizabeth Ethier
Publisher	Central Connecticut State University
Resource Type	Master's Thesis
Abstract	This study examines the communication styles and practices between the handicapped and non-handicapped communities in contemporary society. It depicts the processes or lack of communication processes which contribute to the present conditions. The theoretical basis and support for the examination of this project is communication as a primary process. Everything grows out of communication. The information obtained in the research captures the depth and moral drive for why people communicate the way they do in the world today. The situational and dispositional elements of communication between the two communities, was analyzed by strategic face to face interviews. These interviews proceeded through four stages and identified specific problems. The framework of this staged interview process established new resources which brought about different perspectives and a new reality within the communication process. These staged processes illustrate the practical nature of discourse and its reflective effects. The information was collected by the researcher as the facilitator of the interviews in a grounded lived experience. Concern for this study arose from watching people show discomfort, fear, confusion and curiosity when they came into contact with someone labeled handicapped. We cannot solve social problems until we understand how they come about and why they continue to persist. Our chief purpose for this thesis is to assert the connection between the quality of communication and the outcome of communication. The examination of this research process is designed to illustrate that through communication a person's reality is constructed. Many people respond to handicapped people by acting out old conditioned habits because they lack the resources to try a different approach. This research offers a way of examining and understanding the operation of human communication. It provides points of view that uncover things that would otherwise escape our awareness. The essential characteristics of communication reveal that transforming any relationship is accomplished by changing the communicative acts of the parties involved. In view of handicapped and non-handicapped community relations, there tends to be a large gap for understanding the positions of one another. It is this social handicap of our society that requires education in order to promote forward growth. Both the handicapped and non-handicapped communities need to be collectively better educated about the fears and problems of the other side primarily when first encounters take place. As a researcher, an important task in this thesis project was to promote new forms of discourse by suggesting new ways of communication between the communities of handicapped and nonhandicapped persons. The results of this study have several implications for both communities involved. First, the findings of this study signify the importance of attitudes and beliefs in life and how they are shaped and taught from early childhood onward thereby affecting people's happiness and productivity. To assist people of both communities, there should be a wider area allocated for teaching in the education process. This area needs to address non-handicapped people's views and comfort levels when dealing with handicapped people on a daily basis. Society needs to realize that handicapped people have ability, independence, worth and beauty beyond what they perceive by simply looking at a handicapped person and making judgments. Second, the results of this study indicate that life satisfaction on the communication level for those labeled handicapped may be predicted by the objective of the actual encounters that willingly come forth for those in the minority group of the handicapped. Both communities should continue to address ways in which they could bring about a greater interaction for the growth of society in general. Third, the findings of this study suggest that non-handicapped people place a high value on the personal appearance. It correlates with the saying first impressions are lasting. When the non-handicapped community communicate with the handicapped community whether it be on a group level or singular face to face encounter between two people, the issues of outer appearance need to be taken into consideration. Both communities should be involved in developing and carrying out diverse plans for a greater acceptance, tolerance and inclusion. Human beings are born to communicate. We live in a world of communication built by communication. This view guides us to observe the ways in which our worlds are constructed in society and to explore designs of social life in which better worlds might be created universally.
Subject	People with disabilities -- Attitudes
Department	Department of Communication
Advisor	Moemeka, Andrew A. (Andrew Azukaego)
Type	Text
Digital Format	application/pdf
Language	eng
Date of Publication	2000
OCLC number	48115934
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Communication with the handicapped : case study of communication styles and practices between handicapped and non[-]handicapped citizens / Elizabeth Ethier

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