Review of Orfanidou et al. 2015 book "Research methods in sign language studies: A practical guide"
What is it about?
Occhino & Hou review "Research methods in sign language studies: A practical guide" chapters by chapter, commenting on the range of methods and discussing why this book is a much-needed addition to the fields of sign language studies, deaf studies, and linguistics, psychology, and neuroscience more generally.
Why is it important?
Sign language research began in earnest in the 1970s, with individual treatises describing formal properties of sign languages for the first time. In subsequent decades, the field has diversified, with a remarkable number of scholars working across an array of methodologies, from typological language documentation to neurolinguistics. Yet, until now, there has been no attempt to assemble these methodologies into a single textbook, offering guidelines for conducting research on sign languages. With this edited volume, Orfanidou, Woll, and Morgan havethankfully filled this gap.