Labeling

Labels are commonly used to describe a person or an object. Relative to identity, labels typically have the function of naming social groups with which individuals may be identified. Labels prevail because of the human need to belong to specific social groups and to categorize other individuals as part of groups. Labeled social groups essentially are stereotypical representations of individuals who have connected with these groups. The meanings of these labels typically vary in level of inclusiveness, content, and type. This entry explains how labels have served to categorize deaf people in the minds of society, all too often with negative connotations. How we evaluate the relative importance of each label is part of the dynamic process of conceptualizing identity.

Labels applied to deaf people may be subject to simplification or distortion because labeling involves making sense of complex schema and organizing or condensing information to eliminate ambiguity and emphasize boundaries or differences. As an example, the label “hard of hearing” is often taken to mean that a person labeled as hard of hearing is part of a marginalized group, unable to integrate into either hearing or Deaf groups because of communication difficulties. However, not all “hard-of-hearing” people struggle, and many have found ways of being that are self-affirming.

In centuries past, people who could not hear were labeled as “deaf,” “deaf and dumb,” or “deaf-mute,” for example. The focus obviously was on the nonfunctional ear, thereby leading to a medical perspective on what the “deaf” label meant. This perspective focused on what the deaf person could do and suggested a need for medical amelioration of the “hearing problem.” Unfortunately, the trend has been to interpret these deaf labels to mean that the deaf person overall is limited, deficient, and defective—that the deaf person is unable to perform on a par with hearing peers and is consigned to a world of silence and isolation. This is a tragic conceptualization that often does not play out in reality considering the many vibrant Deaf communities all over the world. This “deaf” label also glosses over the diversity of the Deaf community and the many ways to be Deaf.

Over time, a multiplicity of other labels have emerged to depict the deaf person in various ways, including “hearing impaired,” “late deafened,” “oral deaf,” “hard of hearing,” “deaf with a cochlear implant,” “deaf-plus,” “deaf with disabilities,” “deaf-blind,” “deaf low-vision,” and “Deaf.” Each label indicates a different representation of what it means to be deaf, how an individual functions, ways and means of communicating, language choices, and perferences for socializing with deaf or hearing peers. Each label has the power to convey stereotypical representations that may or may not accurately reflect the deaf person in question.

[Page 542]What does the label “deaf and dumb” actually mean? Deaf refers to the inability to hear. The archaic meaning of dumb is “mute,” specifically unable to speak. However, the meaning of the word dumb with which most people are familiar is “stupid” or “lacking in intellectual ability.” This type of label has reinforced the image of deaf people as stupid, deficient, defective, limited, and lacking in ability, thereby endorsing society’s perceptions that deaf people cannot function similarly to hearing peers. Of course, this is often not the case. As a matter of fact, if you ask relatives or acquaintances of a deaf person whether they think that person is “dumb,” they are likely to be startled and say, “No way! My friend/relative is not dumb!” This reaction illustrates the implicit influence of how the “dumb” appellation may subtly color people’s thoughts about the individual in question.

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