How can family support theory be of value in helping us understand and work with people with disabilities

Understand and Work with People with Disabilities

Understand and Work with People with Disabilities

Introduction

Since the early nineties the scientific field of disability has been flooded with numerous theoretical publications, articles and books, made ??by academics from the UK and U.S. The academics and activists in the UK put together all work and present a social model or theory of disability. The social model argues that the concept of disability is a 'Social construction' imposed and presents a vision of disability as a class oppressed, with a severe criticism of the role played by professionals and defense of an alternative political rather than scientific. This position has argued by some academic circles in the European countries, and especially in relationship with the world of deafness and physical disability. Many of his supporters also advocate because only people with disabilities are those who are 'qualified' to discuss and investigate the problem, and that still do much of the proponents people with disabilities. They have also led to the so-called disability studies with interesting proposals for training the academic curriculum in universities.

Discussion

The constructivist model of disability defines the meaning and consequences in accordance with the attitudes, practices and structures, weaknesses associated with disabled persons during their work life. The purpose of this model is to reduce the physical barriers and social limits to individuals with disabilities. Breaking the physical barriers, social and attitudinal existing against persons with disability is very important.

The social model is often argued from positions of sociological speculation, but it also involves professionals from other disciplines as psychology, pedagogy or social work. Faced with the medical concept of rehabilitation disabilities that focuses on the individual to improve their deficiencies or psychological which focuses on improving the process of adaptation, proposed 'from inside' the disability as a social theory of it. Oliver (1990) suggests that the meaning of disability rather than understanding is distorted by official definitions derived from the paradigm of rehabilitation such as the used by the World Health Organization.

These definitions and concepts consider people with disabilities as passive objects of intervention, treatment and rehabilitation, creating oppressive consequences for people at reduce disability and violating a static state and experiential components situational. Oliver proposes as an alternative focus on the causes and dimensions social disability, a social theory of disability should be located within the experience of the people with disabilities and their attempts not only to redefine the disability but also to build a political movement among themselves and develop services provided to their own self-defined needs. This social theory of disability as critical psychological and medical models was also raised earlier by Abberley in 1987. (Abberley, 1987, 33-71)

The social model is a theoretical development that arose from the Struggles for independent living and citizenship or civil rights for people with disability. For years, people dedicated to teaching university or collective defense, argue that disability came restrictions on ...