New RNID research has revealed significant barriers faced by deaf people when it comes to dating.
The survey, which polled over 2,000 members of the public, highlights how a lack of understanding and awareness makes finding love particularly difficult when you rely on sign language or wear hearing aids to communicate.
Key findings:
- 25% do not think the general public would be open to dating someone who is deaf and communicates using British Sign Language.
- 18% felt the general public would not be open to dating someone who has hearing loss and wears hearing aids.
- 6% admitted they would be embarrassed to date someone who uses sign language or hearing aids.
- Channel 4’s Married at First Sight UK praised after featuring deaf groom Ross McCarthy.
Of those surveyed, a quarter do not think the general public would be open to dating someone who is deaf and communicates using British Sign Language (BSL) and almost one in five felt the general public would not be open to dating someone who has hearing loss and wears hearing aids.
One in six of respondents say that they personally would feel uncomfortable if they were to go on a date and found out their date was a deaf sign language user. And if a date had hearing loss and wore hearing aids, 13% would be surprised, and 7% would feel uncomfortable.
When asked why they might hesitate to date someone who uses BSL or hearing aids, a lack of confidence and awareness play a significant role. 20% of respondents have never met anyone who communicates with sign language and 17% say they have never met anyone with hearing loss.
Half of those polled do not know any sign language, a third are unsure of how to best communicate with sign language users, and a quarter are unsure how to communicate with someone wearing hearing aids.
The most concerning was that 6% admitted they would be embarrassed to date someone who uses sign language or hearing aids. This embarrassment highlights the need for greater public awareness and understanding.
It does matter
This new research is part of our “It does matter” campaign, which kicked off earlier this year with research that found that two-thirds (67%) of the deaf community and those with hearing loss have faced negative attitudes or behaviours.
Alarmingly, almost half of those surveyed have experienced these attitudes from their own family members, and 54% report being excluded from conversations by being told ‘it doesn’t matter’ when they ask someone to repeat what they missed.
But we know that the public want to do what is best. More than half of people wanted information about how to communicate well with deaf people and people with hearing loss and say that learning basic words and phrases in BSL would help them communicate with BSL users.
A step towards visibility: Married at First Sight UK
Only recently we saw Ross McCarthy on Channel 4’s Married at First Sight UK, who as a deaf groom uses a mixture of lip reading, hearing aids and sign language to communicate.
Ross’ participation is an important step forward in challenging societal perceptions of deafness and raising awareness of the vibrant deaf community.
With one in three adults in the UK being deaf, have hearing loss or tinnitus, his presence on the show opens the door to much-needed conversations about inclusivity and acceptance in romantic relationships.
His romance with Sacha breaks down the misconceptions of communicating with someone who is deaf or has hearing loss. It highlights that some simple adaptations to communications are all that’s needed. Through some patience and understanding, we have seen their relationship develop.
“We all know the dating scene can be tough, and our research shows that the general public are missing out on meaningful potential relationships because they are uncomfortable communicating with deaf people and people with hearing loss.
“This lack of understanding and awareness has real-world implications for people in the deaf community, making dating much more difficult than it needs to be. Shows like ‘Married at First Sight UK’ are a step in the right direction, showing the world that simple adaptations can lead to genuine connections.” – Teri Devine, Director of Inclusion at RNID
We are committed to breaking down barriers and have developed free communication tips and BSL phrases which you can learn at your own pace.
