Kuka ohjelmatekstityksiä katsoo?

Authors

• Kaisa Vitikainen Helsingin yliopisto

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.61200/mikael.129424

Keywords:

subtitling for the deaf and the hard of hearing, intralingual subtitling, reception study, accessibility

Abstract

This article presents the results of a reception study designed to map out different groups who use subtitling for the deaf and the hard of hearing (SDH) and to examine their expectations and preferences regarding the subtitles. The study also covered people who do not use SDH, with the aim of discovering how widely the service is known and why people choose not to utilize it. Most research about SDH in Finland has focused on the primary target group, but the scope of this study was wider.
The data was gathered via an online form, distributed through email and social media in cooperation with the Finnish Broadcasting Company Yle. Out of the 363 respondents, 144 used SDH and 219 did not. Out of the 144 users of SDH, 59 were deaf or hard of hearing and 85 were not. These two groups of users had different reasons for using SDH and different emphasis concerning quality criteria. Many of those who did not use SDH would use them if they were more accessible. Accessibility was also an issue with online and mobile services; SDH users watched more programming on television, while non-users watched more programming online.