Social-Haptic Communication in Brazil and its Developments Paths and Possibilities

Social-haptic communication (SHC) is a kinaesthetic language structured through touch on the body of a person who is deafblind. It extends beyond conventional visual and tactile modes of alternative communication, enabling linguistic organisation through grammatical rules. This article presents and discusses the main findings of the first author’s doctoral research, focusing on the training of guide-interpreters and the structuring of SHC in its consolidation as a natural language. In addition, it examines the role of narrative in constructing knowledge about and within SHC. This qualitative, narrative-based study draws upon the accounts of deafblind individuals and guide-interpreters who participated in a training course conducted by the first author. Their experiences served as the foundation for data collection and analysis.