Incorporating minority perspectives into study design

The vast majority of auditory research in the field of hearing loss is conducted by scientists and clinicians with normal hearing sensitivity. As a result, well-intentioned study and survey designs often miss the mark in representing the disabled experience and quantifying outcomes that are meaningful to those with sensory loss. This underscores the importance of supporting the development and inclusion of scientists with sensory loss in academia. In this talk, we will give examples of studies from vision and hearing loss that were designed by disabled researchers. We will focus on how they differ from those designed by non-disabled scientists in the same field. These examples will highlight how the lived experience of scientists with sensory loss influences the types of research questions asked and metrics used to answer these questions. We will also share methods and data from studies that have successfully incorporated the perspectives of hearing- and vision-impaired individuals into their design process.