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ABSTRACT INFORMATION
Presenter Information:	Presenter 1: Name: Katherine Rogers Affiliation: Katherine Rogers completed a BSc (Hons) in Psychology in 2004 and was awarded a Merit for her Masters of Research Methods in Psychology in 2008. Her interests include the emotional well-being of deaf people and issues surrounding the use of standardized psychometric instruments with the Deaf population. For the past three years, Katherine has been working as a research assistant in the Applied Social Research in Deafness group, under Social Work Education and Research, at The University of Manchester, UK. This has involved working on various projects, such as carrying out independent evaluation studies of projects provided by various services, and being involved in a team which carried out a critical literature review on resilience and deaf children. Katherine is intending to begin her internship at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, Rochester Institute of Technology, USA, in February 2009.
Author Information:	Author 1: Name: Katherine Rogers Affiliation: University of Manchester Author 2: Name: Alys Young Affiliation: University of Manchester
Abstract Information:	Title: On Being a Deaf Role Model Primary Track: 8-Information Dissemination and Marketing Keyword(s): D/deaf role model; partnership working Abstract: In the UK, it is unusual for families with early identified deaf children to meet d/Deaf people as part of early intervention. The National Deaf Children’s Society set up a pilot project to enable parents of children of all ages to have contact with d/Deaf people in a structured way – referred to as the Deaf Role Models (DRMs). DRMs generally were not d/Deaf people with professional qualifications or background in working with families. A concurrent evaluation was commissioned (from the University of Manchester). This presentation will concentrate on: the impact on d/Deaf people themselves of being recruited into this kind of work for the first time and of being involved in direct service delivery activities with hearing parents. Data were collected from 5 focus groups involving 21 DRMs in different areas in UK. The groups were facilitated by a Deaf researcher (the presenter) and all data were filmed. A thematic content analysis approach was used to analyze the data. The main topics to be discussed are: •How DRMs described their professionalism in relating to hearing parents of deaf children •Dilemmas faced and solutions found •Their perspective on the benefits of d/Deaf involvement working with hearing parents and deaf children •Their personal development understood in terms of their continuing journey as d/Deaf person •Their view on the DRM project overall This data is significant in exploring the importance of d/Deaf people’s roles with hearing families from the perspective of d/Deaf practitioners themselves. The findings contribute to our understanding of what makes for an effective partnership between d/Deaf and hearing professionals and between d/Deaf people and hearing families. Presentation(s): Not Available Handouts: Not Available