The Becoming Theory of Parental Transformation: A Grounded Theory Study of Parents Raising Deaf Children in Ireland and Acquiring Irish Sign Language

Language constitutes a fundamental conduit through which parents and children connect, bond, and co-construct identity, values, and meaning. For hearing parents of deaf children, this connection is often disrupted, giving rise to significant communication challenges and necessitating profound adjustments in familial relationships, caregiving practices, and linguistic repertoires. In Ireland, one such response has been the acquisition of Irish Sign Language (ISL) by families seeking to re-establish communicative connection with their deaf child. Utilising Classic Grounded Theory (CGT) as a methodological framework, this study explores how parents of deaf children in Ireland engage with ISL and navigate the complex processes of adjustment and transformation that ensue. The overarching aim was to identify the main concern of these parents and to develop a substantive theory that explains how parents process and resolve this concern. Data was collected through interviews with parents and their children as well as home and lesson observations. The grounded theory generated in this study emerged from interview data with fourteen parents of deaf children from a range of sociolinguistic, regional, and educational backgrounds across Ireland. These interviews were analysed using CGT procedures and coding techniques, beginning with open coding and progressing through selective coding and theoretical coding to develop a theory grounded in the lived experiences of parents of deaf children. The findings of this study indicate that the principal concern of parent participants is being a good parent. While this is a concern common to many parents, it acquires particular significance in the context of parenting a deaf child, where prevailing assumptions about parenting, communication, and identity are often unsettled upon discovering the child's deafness. In order to achieve their parental goal and resolve their main concern of being a good parent, parents must make considerable changes to many aspects of their life. The theory generated from the data, Becoming a parent of a deaf child, explains the process by which parents transform in order to meet their parenting goals. This theory conceptualises parental transformation as a dynamic and recursive process involving three interrelated stages: Grief, Acceptance and Growth. These stages are mediated through three transformative cycles: Understanding (transformation of knowledge), Redefining (transformation of identity), and Recalibrating (transformation of behaviour). The theory accounts for both internal factors (such as parental mindset and resilience) and external factors (such as resources, societal expectations and socioeconomic barriers) that shape parental transformation. Irish Sign Language emerges as a catalyst in this process: language both facilitates communication and transformation, by allowing parents to reframe how they view themselves, their child and the world around them. The main contribution of this study is the theory of Becoming. As a theory of how parents of deaf children engage in transformative parenting experiences, it has a wide array of applications. It contributes a novel conceptualisation of parental transformation that bridges deficit-oriented and strengths-based paradigms by foregrounding the process-based, non-linear, and relational dimensions of change. The findings have significant implications for policy, practice and education. The study advocates for earlier and more sustained access to ISL for families, alongside greater recognition of the sociocultural dimensions of deafness. The thesis highlights the importance of peer-led, experiential knowledge in shaping effective early intervention and support services. These insights call for more inclusive, linguistically informed and socioculturally attuned approaches in service delivery for families of deaf and hard-of-hearing children. This work highlights new directions for interdisciplinary work at the intersections of professional practice, education, and policy reform. In conclusion, this research offers an empirically grounded, theoretically rich contribution to ongoing conversations about parenting, deafness, and language acquisition. By centring parental voices and mapping their trajectories of transformation, it enhances understanding of what it means to become a parent of a deaf child in contemporary Ireland and highlights the linguistic, emotional, and identity work that this process entails.