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Adulthood and people with mental handicaps: report of a research project
- Author:
- WALMSLEY Jan
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Handicap Research, 4(2), 1991, pp.141-154.
- Publisher:
- BIMH Publications
Describes a small project which used research interviews to discover the meaning of adulthood to the research participants, five adults with mental handicaps. The project set out to design a research process which would respect their status as adults. The paper focuses on the research process, and the merits and difficulties of the approach are discussed in the context of research methodologies which emphasise the need to redress the power imbalance inherent in more traditional methods.
The added value of inclusive research
- Authors:
- WALMSLEY Jan, STRNADOVA Iva, JOHNSON Kelley
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 31(5), 2018, pp.751-759.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Background: The study asks when does inclusive research add value? The authors argue that this is important, given the additional time and cost of co‐researching with people with intellectual disabilities. The study is situated in debates about a “second generation” of inclusive research which advocates focussing more on outcomes than process. The authors argue that this is premature, rather the authors propose that inclusive research is valuable when it helps to recognize, foster, and above all communicate the contributions people with intellectual disabilities can make. Method: The authors conducted a literature review of 52 peer‐reviewed journal articles about inclusive research and analysed them. Results: The authors conclude that inclusive research adds value when there is a distinctive contribution which only co‐researchers with intellectual disabilities can make, when it highlights the contributions people with intellectual disabilities make, and when it contributes to better lives for the wider population of people with intellectual disabilities. Conclusions: The authors propose a revised definition of inclusive research to replace that published by Walmsley and Johnson in 2003. (Edited publisher abstract)
What stops doctors doing annual health checks?
- Authors:
- WALMSLEY Jan, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Learning Disability Today, June 2011, pp.30-33.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
Annual health checks for people with learning disabilities were introduced in 2009. The findings of research into GP's experiences of offering annual health checks in Oxfordshire are reported. Of the six GP's interviewed only two practices had completed checks for over 50% of the people eligible. My Life My Choice champions, all people with learning disabilities, also visited three of the six practices and reported on the welcome they received.
Parents as co-researchers: a participatory action research initiative involving parents of people with intellectual disabilities in Ireland
- Authors:
- WALMSLEY Jan, MANNAN Hasheem
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 37(4), December 2009, pp.271-276.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This paper evaluates a participatory action research approach to conducting family research in Ireland, where most adults with intellectual disabilities live with their parents. Drawing on participatory research methodology this paper describes how parents of people with intellectual disabilities were recruited and trained by staff of the National Institute for Intellectual Disability, in Ireland, to facilitate focus groups of parents, in order to create an evidence base to support improved dialogue between those parents and service providers. Seventy family members participated in the focus groups in nine locations across Ireland, of which 44 took part in training workshops for co-researchers. After the workshops 10 family members expressed continued interest in being co-researchers. The authors found that a participatory research approach has considerable potential to contribute to improved understanding of the realities of family life with an adult with intellectual disabilities, particularly if plans to create a dialogue with service providers and to build sustainable networks of parents are included in the project.
Self-advocacy in historical perspective
- Authors:
- BUCHANAN Ian, WALMSLEY Jan
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 34(3), September 2006, pp.133-138.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This paper looks at the history of self advocacy in England. It then considers different constructions of self-advocacy as they have emerged over the last 25 years. The authors highlight the tension between self-advocacy as a means for individuals to gain a voice, and affirm identity, and self-advocacy as a collective movement representing the interests of a particular group. The final section is a commentary on the states of self-advocacy in the UK. After Valuing People, people expect self advocacy organizations to speak up for everyone with learning difficulties. The authors argue it is possible to see self-advocacy as a form collective representation privileged over self-advocacy as a means to develop and affirm individual identity. The importance of finding ways to support self advocacy groups, especially those run by people themselves, to avoid this happening.
Inclusive research with people with learning disabilities: past, present and futures
- Authors:
- WALMSLEY Jan, JOHNSON Kelley
- Publisher:
- Jessica Kingsley
- Publication year:
- 2003
- Pagination:
- 256p.,bibliog.
- Place of publication:
- London
The authors explain how lessons learnt from inclusive research in the learning disability field are applicable to others working with marginalized groups. They examine the origins and the process of inclusive research, describing how and why it takes place, who carries it out, who funds it, how it is designed and how it relates to policy and practice. They look at the challenges inherent in this work, such as balancing the voice of the researcher with that of disabled participants and clarifying roles within research projects, and explore how it can become more inclusive and empowering. Providing information and advice to researchers, policy makers and students as well as other health and social care professionals, this book presents a comprehensive examination of participative research in social care.
Doing what mum wants me to do: looking at family relationships from the point of view of people with intellectual disabilities
- Author:
- WALMSLEY Jan
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 9(4), 1996, pp.324-341.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Examines what some adults with intellectual disabilities have to say about relationships with their parents. The data arises from biographical interviews with 22 adults. It demonstrates that when adults with intellectual disabilities are asked to speak about relationships they present views which challenge some stereotypical views about care and dependency. The paper concludes with some observations on implications for professionals working with adults with disabilities and their families.
“… but if you're afraid of things, how are you meant to belong?” What belonging means to people with intellectual disabilities?
- Authors:
- STRNADOV Iva, JOHNSON Kelley, WALMSLEY Jan
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 31(6), 2018, pp.1091-1102.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Background: A policy commitment to social inclusion has brought about some positive changes in the lives of people with intellectual disabilities; yet many also continue to experience social isolation, poverty and abuse. The authors introduce a framework for belonging from the literature and then present a study exploring the views of people with intellectual disabilities about belonging. These are discussed in relation to the framework identified from the literature. Method: Three focus groups with 24 participants with intellectual disabilities were conducted in New South Wales and Victoria (Australia). The authors used inductive content analysis to identify four meanings of belonging: (i) belonging in relation to place, (ii) as being part of a community, (iii) as having relationships and (iv) as identity. Also discussed are commonly experienced barriers to belonging identified by participants. Conclusions: Implications for policy, service provision and practice are discussed. (Publisher abstract)
Normalisation emancipatory research and inclusive research in learning disability
- Author:
- WALMSLEY Jan
- Journal article citation:
- Disability and Society, 16(2), March 2001, pp.187-205.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
This article traces the influence of two major sets of ideas: normalisation/srv, and the social model of disability on inclusive research in learning disability. The argument is that normalisation set the agenda for learning disability research for two or more decades. Inclusive researchers continue to apply normalisation thinking to work with people with learning difficulties, particularly in assuming the role of advocate. Latterly, a number of researchers have tried to rise to the challenges posed by emancipatory research, particularly in attempting to find ways to put people with learning difficulties in control. Whilst some ideas from emancipatory research have been applied in learning disability, there are debates in the disability literature that have not been addressed in learning disability research to date. The result is that inclusive research in learning disability is in danger of being marginalised, both in the context of disability studies and in the context of the broad sweep of learning disability research.
'A pair of stout shoes and an umbrella': the role of the mental welfare officer in delivering community care in East Anglia: 1946-1970
- Authors:
- ROLPH Sheena, ATKINSON Dorothy, WALMSLEY Jan
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Social Work, 33(3), April 2003, pp.339-359.
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
This article describes an oral history research project which explored a little-known aspect of the history of social work: the history of mental welfare officers and their role in community care. We interviewed former MWOs and analysed both private and public documents to explore this history in East Anglia between 1946 and 1970. In the paper we address three themes. In the first place, we argue that MWOs, as well as carrying out their statutory function in overseeing hospital admissions, had a significant role in community care for people with learning difficulties and psychiatric problems. They began to advocate on behalf of clients, often making a case for home support and they supported parents' groups. Increasingly, they carried out case-work and painstaking social work with families. In the second place, we explore the surprising finding that, among MWOs, genericism was not as new a concept in 1970 as many writers have assumed. Finally, we analyse some gender issues that emerged from the research and the way they influenced attitudes to community care held by some MWOs. The paper looks at the gradual development of a profession from one with little consistent training, to one in which specialist education began to be seen as an important aspect of the role of the MWO.