An examination of visually impaired individuals’ communicative negotiation of face threats

Abstract

Being visually impaired is an inherently face threatening and potentially stigmatizing experience that can greatly affect personal relationships. Those with a visual impairment frequently miss nonverbal cues, must rely on others for transportation and other assistance, and can be overtly marked as different through their use of a cane or a guide dog. Framed by the theoretical lens of facework and using in-depth interviews of 24 visually impaired individuals, this study uncovered how people with a visual impairment engaged in facework to mitigate and remediate the low-vision-related face threats they and others experienced. Participants reported using preventive facework, including politeness and humor, as well as corrective facework (avoidance, apologies, accounts, and humor) to manage face threats. Interviewees also engaged in a new type of facework that was simultaneously corrective and preventive: future facework (education and advocacy). Findings offer practical strategies visually impaired individuals can use to ward off or repair face threatening acts, contesting stigma and potentially improving relationships and fostering allyship among sighted individuals. The study also suggests that facework be incorporated into a biopsychosocial model of disability to help combat disabling social barriers.

Examining the face threatening acts individuals with autism spectrum disorder experience and how they respond

“…An individual might avoid the FTA by not drawing attention to the FTA. For example, when visually impaired individuals experienced problematic behavior by sighted individuals, they avoided the FTA rather than addressing it (Romo et al, 2023). Individuals might also make a joke (Cupach & Metts, 1994).…”

“…Individuals might also make a joke (Cupach & Metts, 1994). When correcting face-loss due to their low vision, visually impaired individuals made jokes about their vision (Romo et al, 2023). Similarly, individuals might apologize by admitting blame for the FTA and seeking atonement (Cupach & Metts, 1994).…”

“…Similarly, individuals might apologize by admitting blame for the FTA and seeking atonement (Cupach & Metts, 1994). After committing FTAs due to their low vision, visually impaired individuals apologized to their communication partners (Romo et al, 2023). Both those with ASD and visually impaired individuals cannot control their diagnosis.…”

“…Theoretically, scholars argue that individuals enact facework in response to or anticipation of FTAs. Yet, prior face research has treated FTAs and facework behaviors as distinct concepts (see Romo et al, 2023). Specifically, scholars often used a thematic analysis to find themes pertaining to the FTAs participants experienced and the facework strategies they used without examining how the two were related.…”

“…Although FTAs and facework strategies are theoretically linked, scholars who study facework in the interpretive paradigm often identify the themes of the FTAs and facework strategies without looking at the relationships between the two. Romo and colleagues (2023) called for researchers to examine how FTAs and facework strategies might occur in patterned ways. To answer this call and fill this gap in face theory, the third goal of this study is to examine what, if any, patterns exist across FTAs and facework behaviors.…”