Search results for ‘Subject term:"learning disabilities"’ Sort:
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Dedifferentiation and difference: people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities and the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS)
- Author:
- KING Michelle
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 45(4), 2020, pp.320-325.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Dedifferentiation represents the merging of the wider “intellectual disability” category with the broader one of “disability” generally; a product of the ascendance of the social model of disability. The recent re-emergence of the significance of impairment and embodiment in disability theory re-establishes the importance of situated experience and reinserts realities of difference in the dedifferentiation/difference debate. This paper highlights these issues by exploring the experiences of people with Profound Intellectual and Multiple Disabilities (PIMD) and their decision-making supporters in the context of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) in Australia. Lived experiences accessing, planning for, and implementing NDIS supports illustrate some limitations of dedifferentiation in social services, highlighting the need for recognition of realities of embodied difference for people with PIMD. Here, our systems and theories are most uncomfortable, our ideals of inclusion are most challenged in practice, and some balance between realities of difference and ideals of dedifferentiation is most needed. (Edited publisher abstract)
'I need help on Mondays, it's not my day. The other days, I'm OK'. Perspectives of disabled children on inclusive education
- Authors:
- de SCHAUWER Elisabeth, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Society, 23(2), March 2009, pp.99-111.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This article examines the experience of inclusive education from the perspective of disabled children. The study uses observations of, and interviews with, 15 children, aged 5–17 who go to a mainstream school. The study is set in the context of a 3-year research project exploring the practice of inclusive education in Flanders. The authors report on the key findings from the children's accounts, focusing on what they had to say about themselves, what they think about school, friends, support and their future prospects.
Moral positioning: service user experiences of challenging behaviour in learning disability services
- Author:
- STEVENS Martin
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Social Work, 36(6), September 2006, pp.955-978.
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
Several studies have indicated the importance of challenging behaviour as a limiting factor on quality of life. This article presents the findings of research that aimed to investigate adults with learning disabilities’ understanding and experiences of what is perceived by staff and services to be challenging behaviour. This study was the final phase of research involving Interviews, group discussions and observations were carried out with twenty-six people with learning disabilities using social services’ residential and day services. Participants were able to articulate complex responses about challenging behaviour, which is characterized as a ‘moral web’: a complex network of antecedents, behaviours and consequences. Social care staff were seen by participants to play a key role: protecting people and ensuring that appropriate (negative) consequences were suffered by instigators of challenging behaviour. These findings are interpreted within a positioning theory perspective, suggesting the importance of understanding the ways that challenging behaviour is constructed through social interaction. Implications in the following areas are discussed: developing practice; the role of social care staff; and the study of challenging behaviour as a social phenomenon.
“They just get it” an exploration of father's experiences and perceptions of a support group for men caring for children with disabilities and/or developmental delay
- Authors:
- BATCHELOR Molly, MAGUIRE Sabine, SHEARN Julia
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 34(1), 2021, pp.263-273.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Background: Support groups available to parents/carers of children with a disability or developmental delay (DDD) are predominately attended by women. Limited data exists reporting experiences of the few male‐only support groups. This paper examines experiences of fathers of children with DDD attending a male‐only support group from South Wales. Method: All fifteen members from a support group for fathers/male carers of children with DDD were invited to take part in qualitative interviews and seven participated. The data were analysed following Braun and Clarke's (Qualitative research in psychology, 2006, 3:77) thematic framework. Results: Within the group, fathers felt understood by similarly situated men, and a sense of connectivity and belonging. Fathers perceived exclusion elsewhere, including mixed‐gender groups. Fathers felt permission to talk in a way consistent with their male identities, and valued receiving, and giving, support. Conclusions: Mixed‐gender support groups may not meet the needs of fathers, and there are potential benefits in providing male‐only groups. (Edited publisher abstract)
An ethnography exploring the limits of dedifferentiation in the lives of adults with intellectual disabilities
- Authors:
- BANKS C. A., GOOBERMAN-HILL R., WAINWRIGHT D.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 45(4), 2020, pp.344-354.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
Background: Dedifferentiation refers to the trend of positioning people with intellectual disabilities together with other disabled individuals for political purposes, to act as a counter to differentiated approaches. This article explores the influence of dedifferentiation in professional support settings through the lived experiences of people with intellectual disabilities and their staff. Methods: Ethnographic research, including participant observation and interviews, conducted with an intellectual disability social care provider and an independent community café, both based in an area of England. Results: Tensions exist between dedifferentiation aims and the lived experiences of people with intellectual disabilities, who often struggled to achieve in areas including independent community inclusion and paid employment. Conclusion: Dedifferentiation has disadvantages for people with intellectual disabilities. It can underestimate and mask needs that people experience in relation to their disabilities. Policy and professional support might be improved by (1) recognising these limits and (2) incorporating people’s real-world needs into support provision. (Edited publisher abstract)
Parenting Chrissy: a transformational journey through the hazards of the disability system
- Author:
- GREGORY Jane
- Publisher:
- Centre for Welfare Reform
- Publication year:
- 2017
- Pagination:
- 41
- Place of publication:
- Sheffield
This autoethnography explores the journey of a mother of a woman with intellectual disabilities whose complex needs and behaviour has presented significant challenges to services. The biographical accounts include the experiences of receiving the daughter’s diagnoses of a rare chromosome disorder and autism in her adulthood. The former allowed a unique story which emerged from phenomena that is being swept in by the tide of the technological revolution in the detection of gene mutations and structural genomic variations causing learning disability. Within the theoretical frameworks of critical disability studies, social constructionism and family systems approaches, the author weaves 31 years of autobiographical accounts with cultural and structural factors that influence the experiences of parents of children with learning disabilities. Included in the investigations were the uncovering of new knowledge about the culture of intellectual disability and an examination of the events leading up to the daughter’s four-year incarceration in an institution. Evidence of oppressive, dehumanising social policies and practices intersect with new themes, including the journey from asking ‘why?’ to knowing, and chasing new ‘fixes’ to the liberating possibilities of policy changes and transformative validation. (Edited publisher abstract)
Commentary on "A qualitative exploration of the life experiences of adults diagnosed with mild learning disabilities from minority ethnic communities"
- Author:
- RAGHAVAN Raghu
- Journal article citation:
- Tizard Learning Disability Review, 16(5), 2011, pp.14-17.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
In this article, the author provides a commentary on an article by Claudio Pestana reporting on a study about the life experiences of black and minority ethnic adults with mild learning disabilities. The commentary notes the importance of hearing the views and experiences of people with learning disabilities from minority ethnic communities and the context of the Valuing People White Paper outlining the government's strategy for improving the lives of people with a learning disability. It discusses inclusion and social networks for people with learning disabilities. The author argues that professionals, service providers and commissioners should have a clear understanding of the population that they are serving, and stresses the need for cultural awareness and cultural knowledge amongst health and social care professionals working with people with learning disabilities and their families.
A qualitative exploration of the life experiences of adults diagnosed with mild learning disabilities from minority ethnic communities
- Author:
- PESTANA Claudio
- Journal article citation:
- Tizard Learning Disability Review, 16(5), 2011, pp.6-13.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
A study was undertaken to increase understanding of the experiences of black and minority ethnic adults with mild learning disabilities to explore perceived effects of having learning disabilities on family support, social inclusion, employment and cultural needs. The 4 participants for the study were recruited through a care manager from a charitable organisation operating a number of services for people with learning disabilities in London. The study used the interpretive phenomenological analysis approach, in which analysis of the data takes into account interaction between the participants' narratives and the researcher's interpretations. Information was gathered through in-depth interviews, and the article describes the analysis and the findings. The 4 central themes identified were: suffering abuse as an effect of having learning disabilities, being socially isolated, receiving support at work, and having unmet cultural needs. The findings are discussed using examples from the interviews.
A guide to short breaks: supporting family carers and people with learning disabilities to have short breaks that work for them
- Authors:
- FITZPATRICK Julia, WOOD Alicia
- Publisher:
- Paradigm
- Publication year:
- 2007
- Pagination:
- 30p.
- Place of publication:
- Birkenhead
This is a guide written by Paradigm on behalf of the Valuing People Support Team, aimed at family carers and people with learning disabilities. There are sections on: the importance of breaks; what is a short break?; short breaks - a recipe for success; the short breaks menu; essential ingredients; and sharing information and best practice.
- video
LGBTQI+ video stories
- Author:
- SOCIAL CARE INSTITUTE FOR EXCELLENCE
- Publisher:
- Social Care Institute for Excellence
- Publication year:
- 2017
- Place of publication:
- London
This resource presents five accounts of LGBTQI+ people and their care and support experiences. The stories focus on people with physical disabilities; people with mental health needs; people with learning disabilities; partners in adoption services; and older people and residential care. (Edited publisher abstract)