Table of Contents

List of figures; List of tables; Foreword; Preface; Acknowledgements; Copyright declarations; Abbreviatiosns; Section I: Disabilities in our minds: Social Representations Theory and methods in context; 1. Representations of disabilities; 2. Introduction to the Social Representations Theory; Section II: Application of the Social Representations Theory in disability studies; 3. How to study social representations?; 4. Cross-culture research and social representations; Section III: Using social representations theory in understanding public perception of hearing loss and hearing aids; 5. Attitude towards hearing loss and hearing aids; 6. Social representation of hearing loss and hearing aids; 7. Representation of hearing loss and hearing aids in the United States newspapers; Section VI: Implications and future directions; 8. Advantages of Social Representations Theory and further directions; Index

About the Author

Vinaya Manchaiah, Au.D., MBA, Ph.D. is Jo Mayo Endowed Professor at the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, Lamar University, Beaumont, Texas, USA. Dr. Manchaiah has worked in various clinical, teaching, research, and administrative roles. His research mainly focuses on improving the accessibility, affordability, and outcomes of hearing and balance disorders, by promoting self-management and using digital technologies.

Berth Danermark, Ph.D. is Professor Emeritus of Sociology and the former leader of The Swedish Institute for Disability Research (SIDR), Örebro University, Sweden. Within the field of disability research, Prof. Danermark focuses primarily on issues related to hearing and communication from a social, psychological, and sociological perspective. In collaboration with researchers in other disciplines, he has developed an interdisciplinary approach that interweaves a behavioral and social science perspective both technically and medically. Prof. Danermark is also currently working on issues related to interdisciplinary research and inter-professional collaboration.

Per Germundsson, Ph.D. is Senior Lecturer and Associate Professor in Social Work at Malmö University, Sweden. Dr. Germundsson has many years of experience in working-life rehabilitation and education for people with disabilities. In recent years, he has focused, and researched, collaboration between professions and actors in the welfare state. He has participated in several evaluations of collaboration concerning children, young people, and disability.

Pierre Ratinaud, Ph.D. is Senior Lecturer in Sciences of Education at LERASS Laboratory, University of Toulouse Jean Jaurès, Toulouse, France. Dr. Ratinaud’s research focuses on the analysis of the dynamics of systems of social representations. He is also the main developer of the open source software Iramuteq, for statistical analysis of textual data.