Description

Abstract Text: The workplace presents many challenges for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals, partially because a wide array of strategies to accommodate the communication needs of people with typical hearing, and flexibility in their use, are essential for upward mobility (Foster & Walter, 1992). Job-related demands also make the workplace a more difficult communication situation for those who are deaf compared to those who are hard of hearing (Boutin & Wilson, 2009). Both groups, however, tend to experience less success in securing higher level jobs than their peers with typical hearing and are limited by level of college degree (Kelly, Quagliata, DeMartino, & Perotti, 2015). For both deaf and hard-of-hearing workers, communication on the job reportedly involves English about 80% of the time, whether through writing, speech, or sign language with speech (Kelly et al., 2015). Given the spoken-language communication requirements of the workplace, to what extent does current speech recognition technology, especially as available in mobile apps, enhance access by deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals? Are speech recognition apps usable tools to enhance exchanges between deaf or hard-of-hearing persons and individuals who have typical hearing, whether it be a coworker or a boss? To investigate the capabilities of newer Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) applications/software as tools to support auditory access of spoken communication, we asked 26 deaf and hard-of-hearing college students to use a variety of applications and software in everyday, job-related settings and to provide evaluative feedback on their experiences. In this workshop our evaluators' findings will be shared. Additionally, participants will learn about outcomes trials with a beta app called Ava by Transcense Labs. AVA focuses on a seamless conversational experience for deaf and hard-of-hearing persons and is described as being like Siri, but for group conversations. The app shows a real-time, color-coded transcript of a discussion for use in situations such as meetings and on-the-job conferences. References: Boutin, D. L., and Wilson, K. B. (2009). Professional jobs and hearing loss: A comparison of deaf and hard of hearing consumers. Journal of Rehabilitation. 75(1): 36–40. Kelly, R., Quagliata, A., DeMartino, R., & Perotti, V. (2015). Deaf workers: Educated and employed, but limited in career growth. In Proceedings of the 22nd International Conference on Education of the Deaf. Athens, Greece.

Date of creation, presentation, or exhibit

1-21-2016

Comments

Originally presented at the NTID Scholarship Symposium

Document Type

Presentation

Department, Program, or Center

Communication Studies and Services (NTID)

Campus

RIT – Main Campus

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