Disabilities, Volume 2, Issue 3 (September 2022) – 13 articles

In 1965, Saad Z. Nagi published a very influential conceptual model of disablement in which he distinguished among several aspects of the disability phenomenon. In the following decades, several other conceptual models were proposed, increasingly taking up ideas and demands emerging from the disability movement, especially the social model of disability. In this review, three generations of these conceptual models of disability are presented, contrasted, and evaluated, especially in regard to the thematization of non-biomedical aspects. The elaboration ensues with the help of the criterion of construct clarity and thus focuses on the model’s definitions of components, application context, value assumptions, and content validity. For the latter aspects, the health sociological triad of disease/illness/sickness is employed. These concepts are adapted to the disability phenomenon. While the first generation focuses on a mainly biomedical disablement process, only later supplemented with other context factors, the second generation attempts to combine this assortment with a relational understanding of disability and also increasingly departs from conceptualizing the components negatively. Finally, the third generation of conceptual models is more holistic, and gives more weight to environmental aspects, but still somewhat neglects the individual aspects. Full article

Technology could improve the vocational inclusion of people with disabilities, thus increasing their wellbeing and competence development. Moreover, societies could benefit from their skills and expertise. In this protocol, the objectives, structure, and further details of a scoping review on the subject of the vocational inclusion of people with disabilities via technologies are described. This article additionally demonstrates how a piloting phase can be used for the further development of the protocol. The focus of the proposed scoping review is disability, technology, and task/work. Expansive and specific keywords will be searched in APA PsycInfo, APA PsycArticles, and CINAHL Complete via EBSCOhost, Web of Science, Embase, Scopus, and IEEE Xplore. As regards the grey literature, ProQuest will be used for dissertations and theses and Google Scholar will be hand searched. Articles published in 2012–2022 focused on working-age adults will be exported to EndNote and titles/abstracts will be monitored. We further describe the inclusion and exclusion criteria, data extraction, and charting strategies of the proposed scoping review. The results will be mapped and reported based on disability, technology, and task. For the improvement of the protocol, a pilot study in February 2022 was performed. The results from the pilot, briefly reported herein, led to a transparent and clear structure of the proposed scoping review. Full article

The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognizes the value of the contributions these individuals can make to well-being and diversity, and thus the active role they must play in research on their lives. This study aims to investigate the perspectives of people with intellectual disabilities who were part of an Advisory Committee that has been collaborating in research for 9 years on what they learnt and what the research experience meant to them. Their opinions were analysed through individual interviews, focus groups, and the revision of more than 297 written and visual documents produced during the last 9 years. Participants reported significant learning related to the research process, as well as socio-personal learning. Moreover, they reported the increase of their sense of belonging to a socially valued group, enrichment of their social networks and a gain in personal well-being. Beyond contributing to the conduction of research based on the people’s needs, the involvement of people with intellectual disabilities in dissemination actions addressed to the professional field and social policies is deemed as a necessary action in order to make their role in social change more visible. Full article

Purpose: This study aims to explore the Quality of Life (QOL) amongst ten stroke survivors in the SE communities of Nigeria. Design: Qualitative study using semi-structured interviews. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) was utilized. Setting: Medical institutes in the southeast communities of Nigeria. Participants: 10 participants ranging in age from 29 to 72 years old. Stroke is typically a life-changing catastrophe, claiming over 55 million lives and disabling 44 million people each year. According to the research, stroke incidence has decreased by 42% in high-income nations worldwide but has increased by 100% in low-income areas such as Africa. Surviving a stroke can be a long-term process that impacts numerous elements of an individual’s life. Stroke-related QOL is a major health care issue in Nigeria that has received insufficient attention. The primary objective for survivors is to improve their QOL. Thus, it is critical to understand the true impact of stroke on the QOL of stroke survivors from their perspective. Individual, semi-structured, in-depth interviews with 10 stroke survivors were conducted. An IPA approach shaped the interview process and the analysis of the data. Three main themes arose from the data: an ‘unfamiliar self’ which illuminated the altered body (unpredictable body), the ‘recovery of the embodied self’ (the transitional stage of recovery) and the ‘reconstruction of the embodied self, which reflected a continuous process of belonging and becoming. The impact of stroke on survivors’ QOL was twofold: negative and positive. The physical dimension had the largest detrimental impact on the survivors’ QOL, according to the findings. Spirituality, on the other hand, had the most positive impact on survivors’ QOL in Nigeria’s southeast communities. Full article

Children of parents with intellectual disability (ID) are at risk of behavior problems, but few studies have systematically examined contributions from caregiving behavior and contextual factors. This cross-sectional matched comparison study examined whether the children display elevated behavior problems, and analyzed contributions from maternal sensitivity and maternal experiences of abuse, trauma and maltreatment (ATM). The roles of maternal and child intelligence were also examined. Participants were 26 mothers with mild ID and their children (mean age = 79 months; 58% boys), and 26 socioeconomically matched comparison dyads. Child behavior problems were assessed with maternal ratings, maternal sensitivity with structured observations, and maternal experiences of ATM with semi-structured interviews. Maternal intelligence was measured with a subtest from Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scales (WAIS-III), and child intelligence with the IQ-screen in Leiter-R. Children of mothers with ID had higher ratings on psychosomatic, anger, hyperactivity, and total problems, but not on anxiety. Sensitivity was negatively associated with anger, hyperactivity, and total child behavior problems. Maternal ATM was positively linked to child anger problems. Maternal intelligence was unrelated to child behavior problems, but low child intelligence marginally predicted behavior problems. Inclusion and equity for parents with ID and their children require that clinical practice boost sensitivity, especially among parents who have experienced ATM. Full article

Intellectual disability (ID) is an emerging field of research in Nigeria. This review seeks to identify what has been published in order to describe the evidence and to identify the major gaps in knowledge and practice. A systematic search of five databases and an African disability journal yielded 15 papers that reported on empirical studies related to people with ID in Nigeria. Fifteen studies across the databases and journal searched met the inclusion criteria. The participants included adults and children with ID and their families. Twelve of the papers employed quantitative methods, two were qualitative and one was a mixed methods study. There is a paucity of empirical research on people with ID in Nigeria, thus emphasising the need for more primary research about people with ID living in Nigeria. Nigeria is estimated to have the largest population of people with disabilities in Africa; however, this review found limited empirical work regarding their lives, prevalence and care. This limited evidence hinders the understanding of the challenges people with an intellectual disability face and potentially inhibit the creation of policy-oriented solutions to their plights in a globalised world. Full article

In this qualitative study, young adults with visual impairments aged 18–27 and family members were studied to determine the effects of state-mandated high school driver’s education on independent travel, self-efficacy, and the transition to adulthood. A young person’s ability to travel independently can determine whether he or she transitions successfully from one life stage to another. Concepts from different social theorists are used to form the theoretical frame for data analysis. The author finds that in spite of curricular and pedagogical intervention, regardless of technological advances, and despite low-vision/blind youth’s accomplishments and determination to succeed, young people with low vision/blindness nevertheless continue to be challenged in the realms of the transition to adulthood, securing employment, and independent living due to persistent, societal-level discrimination and perceived incapability. These persistent, unwarranted forms of discrimination profoundly affect young adults’ perceptions of self-efficacy and more often than not close doors to their success. The author posits that societal-level intervention is required to effect meaningful, equitable change designed to dismantle the current systemic discrimination plaguing youth and young adults with visual impairments. Full article

Physical activity (PA) among children and youth with disabilities (CYD) has been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Parent PA support and parent PA modelling (i.e., parents engaging in PA themselves) have been shown to be associated with PA in CYD. However, parents’ influence on the PA behaviours of CYD during the pandemic remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between parent PA support and parent PA modelling (i.e., parent moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA)) and the PA behaviours of CYD. It was hypothesized that higher levels of parent PA support and parent PA modelling would significantly relate to both child MVPA and child PA at any intensity. An online survey was sent to parents of CYD in November 2020 (i.e., during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada) that assessed the MVPA and total PA (any intensity), parent PA support (e.g., encouraging PA, providing transportation for PA), and parent MVPA. Separate linear regression models assessed the relationships between parent PA support and parent PA modelling with (a) child MVPA and (b) child PA at any intensity. Parent and child age, child gender and disability group, marital status, and household type were controlled for in all analyses. A total of 86 parents (Mage = 43 years, SD = 5.9; 93% mothers) of CYD (Mage = 11 years, SD = 3.3; 20% girls; 77% with a developmental disability) completed the survey. Parent PA support was significantly associated with child MVPA (β = 0.30, CI = 0.067–0.438, p = 0.008) but not child PA at any intensity. No significant relationship was shown between parent PA modelling and either child MVPA or child PA at any intensity. Findings suggest that parent PA support, but not parent PA modelling, was associated with PA in CYD, at least during the acute period of the pandemic. Greater efforts must be directed towards developing effective parent PA support interventions to reduce the detrimental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on PA in CYD. Full article

This paper investigates the influence of social capital in the training of persons with disabilities. The expansion of social networks is regarded as a central principle of the rehabilitation agenda and thus is a central concept that may influence the training experiences of persons with disabilities. Absent from much of social capital research is its influence on skill development and employment opportunities for persons with disabilities. Social capital has the potential to play an important role in the livelihoods of persons with disabilities who are at high risk of being marginalised. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore and critically examine the experiences of persons with disabilities who participated in an auxiliary skill development programme, to determine whether and how it has strengthened and expanded their social capital to advance their opportunities for economic inclusion and/or employment. There is currently no convincing practice available, particularly in the South African employment landscape, around how social capital can be incorporated in the employment of persons with disabilities. An intrinsic case study approach was utilised as it allowed for the identification and description of an employability-related skill development programme for persons with disabilities. In this paper, we argue that the transfer of skills alone is not enough for persons with disabilities to gain employment. Full article

Background: There is a lack of tools to screen for health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in acute injury patients, despite the critical need for having a good understanding of the characteristics of mental health during the rehabilitation process. The SF-8 instrument, a shorter version of the SF-36, is the most widely used patient-based assessment of HRQoL. The aim of this research is to adapt the psychometric properties of the SF-8 to Swahili. Methods: This study is a secondary data analysis of previously collected and psychometric evaluation of the culturally adapted and translated SF-8. A cross-cultural adaptation committee carried out the process of translation to provide validity evidence based on test content. Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the internal structure-based evidence. The validity based on relation to other variables (discriminant evidence) was tested using polychoric correlation with PHQ-2 (Patient Health Questionnaire-2). The reliability was tested using Cronbach’s alpha, Omega McDonald, and Composite Reliability. Results: 1434 adults who suffered an acute injury and presented to the emergency department between April 2018 and August 2020 were included in the study. The instrument demonstrated language clarity and domain coherence, showing validity evidence based on test content. The CFA (Confirmatory Factor Analysis) analysis showed good fit indices for both models (one- and two-factor models) of the SF-8. The discriminant evidence showed that SF-8 scores correlate strongly with the PHQ-2 instrument. These results supported the validity evidence in relation to other variables. All analyses of reliability were considered adequate with values above 0.90 for both models of the SF-8. Conclusions: The results show that the SF-8 instrument can provide relevant information about the health-related quality of life of acute injury patients, and allow practitioners to gain a better understanding of mental health, improving the treatment and follow-up of injury patients within Tanzanian culture. Full article

The 21st century to this point has seen increased diversity throughout the student population in higher education. Many stakeholders value this diversity as it enhances the overall education experience for all students. While the number of students with disabilities in higher education is rising, challenges and barriers to participation remain, including for people with intellectual disabilities. The intent of this paper is to make a case for the inclusion of people with intellectual disabilities in higher level education. Following the introduction to the topic, the existing literature on inclusion in higher education is explored, and issues such as challenges to inclusion are discussed. We then explain the situation in the Republic of Ireland, detailing how one university-based programme, the Dublin City University (DCU) Ability project, aims to prepare people with intellectual disabilities to move towards employment. The results of a survey sent to the staff in the University (n = 112), exploring their knowledge and views of the project, is then presented. While the project has been well received by learners and their supporters, it was important to identify the views of University staff to promote the future growth and sustainability of the project. The common themes identified were inclusion and diversity, communication issues, and positioning the project in the University’s Strategic Plan. The results contribute to the case for inclusion as university staff indicate their support while acknowledging challenges. These challenges are primarily in the area of communication but also in ensuring that university goals are implemented to provide a diverse and inclusive university community. We make the case that diversity should be valued, and that universities should be a space for all students, including those with intellectual disabilities, to learn and thrive. Full article

The COVID-19 pandemic caused drastic life changes for people with spinal cord injury (SCI). The objective of the study is to explore the social participation of Canadian wheelchair users with SCI during the first wave of COVID-19. Methods: Fourteen participants from Quebec and British Columbia participated in a multi methods cross-sectional study. Three themes were identified, including (1) perceived participation restrictions for people with SCI and their loved ones, which revealed interruptions and changes in service provision during COVID-19, barriers and inconveniences to maintaining life habits and strategies developed during the pandemic to continue participating in meaningful activities; (2) There was no change in life habits (but some subjects found new ways to perform some activities), which highlights that life simply continued as usual and the participants developed new pastimes and interests; and (3) future hopes and concerns, which explained participants’ concerns about changes in interpersonal relationships after the pandemic. This study highlights daily participation challenges for people with SCI during the pandemic. Even though the use of technologies, delivery services and social support seemed to facilitate engagement in meaningful activities, mental health challenges and concerns for future relationships persisted for some. Full article

The wide availability of 3D-printers makes possible the simple creation of tactile maps for individuals with blindness. However, to be useful, these maps have to be designed using feedback from the future users. In this study, we worked with fifteen individuals with blindness to develop an optimized encoding system for 3D-printed tactile maps for building interiors. Based on their requests, we focused on the development of maps with information about safety routes and emergency exits. Additionally, users identified a set of important physical objects to be encoded on the map. After that, multiple encodings were evaluated individually and when integrated in maps. This resulted in a set of optimal encodings that was most positively perceived by all participants. Full article