Experiences of loneliness among older deaf adults who use sign language.
Anu H Jansson, Maria Kursi, Kaisu H Pitkälä and 3 others
PMID 41251496WHAT IT FOUND
Older deaf sign language users described loneliness as being ignored even within their own community and excluded by hearing people.
They struggled to find signs for loneliness, often expressing it through facial cues. Digital tools helped access information but failed to replace the nuance of face-to-face signing.
Key findings
01Participants experienced exclusion within the deaf sign language community itself, feeling ignored by peers who formed tight groups or labeled them as less intelligent.
02Expressing loneliness was difficult because standard Finnish signs for the concept were often unintelligible or unavailable, leading participants to use euphemisms or rely on non-verbal cues like facial expressions and body language.
03Digital communication tools provided access to news and contact but caused more misunderstandings than face-to-face interactions, reducing motivation to use them for social connection.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Small sample size (n=12) limits transferability. Transcribing sign language into written Finnish may have lost nuances of emotion and expression inherent to the visual language. Participants could not reliably recall how frequently they felt lonely. The study did not measure the frequency or intensity of loneliness, only its nature and expression.
Declared interests
Funded by the Finnish Association for the Welfare of Older Adults. One author (TY) coordinated the Circle of Friends pilot intervention mentioned in the introduction.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that placing a deaf older adult in a group of other deaf sign language users will alleviate loneliness. The study found that participants often felt excluded, ignored, or labeled as 'stupid' within their own linguistic community, suggesting that shared language alone does not guarantee social inclusion or emotional safety.
Summarised by AI from the full paper, without a clinician reviewing it. Check it against the source before it changes what you do. Read it on PubMed →