• Summary: The methodological challenge of adapting research
tools to the needs of the study population takes on paramount importance when
participants have cultural, social, cognitive, or other needs rendering commonly
used questionnaires problematic. This article describes research tools' exploratory
adaptation to a sample of Israeli deaf adults, during a comparative study of 101
deaf adults aged 28 to 51 years and 57 hearing adults aged 24 to 52. Levinger (2003)
conducted a large study on this sample, investigating the links between adults'
personal, familial, and societal variables and their ability to separate from
parents and establish spousal intimacy.
• Findings: The present article is a sub-study focusing on the
adaptation of the larger study's design of specific tools to examine the deaf
population. It describes the tools' preparation, administration, and analysis,
including examination of the various versions' compatibility and the versions'
cultural and linguistic adaptation to the participants' needs. The study included
five research tools containing 125 questions altogether. To minimize the biasing
risks due to deaf adults' reading comprehension difficulties or misinterpretations
of questions' intent, we prepared three versions for each of the tools except for
the 30-item demographic questionnaire: a) the original written version in regular
Hebrew, matched to participants for gender, b) a revised written version in easy
language (adapted to the deaf population and gender-matched), and c) a videotaped
sign language version. Taking part in preparing the various versions were deaf
representatives of the deaf community and hearing translators into Israeli Sign
Language.
• Applications : This article discusses methodological
repercussions of these adaptations; compares the choices made by participants
regarding the various adaptations offered them; and highlights the importance of
familiarity with participants' characteristics and unique needs.
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