Writing in deaf and hard-of-hearing children : A bimodal bilingual perspective on their written products and writing processes

This thesis presents unique insights into the written products and writing processes of Swedish deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children using a keystroke logging tool. Writing processes encompass the activities (such as planning or revision) that writers engage in during the production of the written text. The thesis explores how the diverse backgrounds of these children, including age, gender, age of acquisition, hearing degree, and sign language proficiency, may influence their narrative texts. The study includes 58 children and adolescents aged 8–18, with varying degrees of hearing loss and linguistic backgrounds in spoken and written Swedish and Swedish Sign Language. This research comprises four studies that collectively demonstrate that DHH children using hearing technology produce written products closely resembling those of children of deaf adults (CODA) and hearing children. The only notable exceptions are in terms of lexical density and text length, both of which may be associated with their reduced auditory input. The finding of few other differences is unique from an international perspective and may be attributed to the effectiveness of early interventions in the Swedish context which, for instance, include sign language courses for parents, bilingual schools, early hearing screening, and early cochlear implant operations. Regarding the writing process, DHH children exhibit a “here-and-now” planning strategy similar to same-age hearing peers. However, the DHH group shows distinctive patterns in writing fluency, with a more deliberate pace and a tendency to revise work more frequently. This writing behavior may be attributed to slower lexical retrieval and phonological challenges from their specific auditory backgrounds. Extensive local revisions and repeated spelling attempts, visible in the writing processes in the DHH group, may explain the minor differences between the DHH and the hearing groups in their written products. When considering background