The Family Environment and Achievement of Deaf Students: A Discriminant Analysis

Abstract

Discriminant analyses were conducted to investigate differences in social-psychological family environment dimensions between young deaf students with high and low academic performance scores in reading comprehension, mathematics concepts, and mathematics computation. Parental responses ( N = 125) to scaled items presented in a semi-structured home interview procedure were factor analyzed and the derived family environment dimensions were employed as predictor variables. Parents of proficient readers were characterized as adapted to their children's deafness, involved in the deaf community, and permissive rather than overprotective in their child-rearing orientation. Across all three academic areas, high achievers had parents with high educational and occupational expectations and standards. Recommendations are made for school program application and professional preparation.