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Loneliness in life stories by people with disabilities

TARVAINEN, Merja
2020

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This study investigates loneliness in life stories by people with disabilities. By approaching loneliness from a relational perspective, this study attempts to illustrate how loneliness and disability are intertwined in the life course. The research question was as follows: How do people with disabilities understand loneliness in their life stories? Life story data ‘Life of Disabled Persons in Finland 2013–2014’ was analysed with a narrative life course approach. Loneliness was narrated in accordance with normative life course expectations. People with disabilities narrated loneliness as unbelonging in childhood, disjointed youth and disaffiliation to normative institutions in adulthood. This study suggests that relation between loneliness and disability concern the conditions of inclusion that is the conditions of living and telling.

  • Loneliness involves both unwanted emotions and social isolation. 
  • In many societies, both loneliness and disability bear a stigma. This so-called double stigma affects the lives of people with disabilities.
  • This study explores loneliness and disability in life stories by people with disabilities in Finland from a life course perspective. Although scholars have widely studied loneliness in Finland, they have not studied loneliness in people with disabilities in any great depth.
  • Loneliness in life stories by people with disabilities was narrated in relation to a sense of bodily difference and occurred as a disconnection from a socially ‘standard’ life course. Loneliness was located within three main phases: childhood, youth and adulthood. Negative attitudes towards disability feed social isolation and emotional loneliness.
  • Further research on disability and loneliness throughout the life course as well as more discussion about the conditions of inclusion and the emotional patterns of social relations are needed.

The grace of motherhood: disabled women contending with societal denial of intimacy, pregnancy, and motherhood in Ethiopia

TEFERA, Belaynesh
VAN ENGEN, Marloes
VAN DER KLINK, Jac
SCHIPPERS, Alice
2017

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This study aimed to provide better understanding of intimacy and marriage, pregnancy, birth, and motherhood experiences of women with disability in Ethiopia. Qualitative, in-depth, and semi-structured interviews along with personal observations were used to explore the full experiences of participants, as told in their own words. The result of the interviews indicated that relationships and motherhood proved a very rewarding option for women with disabilities. They also expressed their need for intimacy regardless of society’s denial. Challenges identified include negative societal attitudes toward women with disabilities regarding relationship, pregnancy, and child-rearing. Accessibility of health centers in addition to the ignorance and negative attitudes of the physicians are also reported to be major challenges for the interviewees. This study highlights how rewarding the experience of motherhood was for the interviewees and also shows that women with disabilities face challenges at every step of their experiences, because of society’s prejudices toward disability.

Linking rehabilitation and social work using the personalised social support process: Steps to establish a social work unit and future directions for social work in Cambodian PRCs using the model developed at Kampong Cham

PEARSON, Anita
SONG, Sit
2017

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This publication intends to draw lessons learned from the set-up of a Social Work (SW) unit in the PRC in Kampong Cham province of Cambodia using the Personalized Social Support (PSS) process and provide an example of person-centered approach in rehabilitation service delivery, to be considered by PWDF and other rehabilitation I/NGOs and promoted within other PRCs in Cambodia. The specific objectives of this publication are: 

  • To identify recruitment strategies and clinical activities conducted by the SW unit 
  • To consider the capacity development of SW staff along the development of a SW unit
  • To outline how SW and PSS are linked to the Cambodian Ministry of Social Affairs Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation Guidelines on Physical Rehabilitation in Cambodia4 (also known as the Standard Working Procedures -SWP) with reference to its application.
  • To consider how SW interventions and PSS contributes to service users’ social participation and rights.

Capturing best practices through a ‘’lessons learnt’’ process can be utilized to advocate for the adoption and replication of such a model within wider rehabilitation services in Cambodia.

This publication was developed by a mixed methods approach on the basis of various sources and tools, including:

  • Desk review including collection of documents and tools used by the SW unit, and field visit reports
  • Workshops/meetings with the PRC Manager, PRC Unit heads and Focal Clients (FC) to gain reflections on the process and map a reverse pathway of change
  • Key Informant interviews: Interviews with members of the project team and local authorities.
  • Case study frames were designed and used as well as some questions from SCOPEO5 Quality of life linked to social and personal relationships during the interview. 
  • Interviews with 15 beneficiaries (SW Clients at the PRC) to assess the impact of SW input over a 13 month period from June 2015 to July 2016

Disability, family and identity

SCHNEIDER, Cort
October 2016

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Many people with disabilities struggle with issues that relate to identity development.  Many people with disabilities find it difficult to develop a positive sense of self. There is also no question that familial relationships play a significant part in the process of identity construction for people with disabilities. Thus, it is important to examine how family relationships influence the process of identitydevelopment for people with disabilities. Conversely, it relevant to explore how a person’s identity development can impact his or her relationship with family members. This article employs an autoethnographic approach to research in order to examine issues that relate to disability, identity and family. It elucidates the complex nature of family scripts and identity. In addition this paper contends that the process that an individual goes through in order to “come to terms” with a disabled identity, can transform the relationships that an individual has with various family members.

 

Considering Disability, Vol.1, Issue 3&4

DOI: 10.17774/CDJ1.32016.2.20575874

‘Everyone needs love’ – an interview study about perceptions of love in people with intellectual disability (ID)

MATTILA, Jenni
MÄÄTTÄ, Kaarina
UUSIAUTTI, Satu
2016

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How do people with intellectual disability (ID) perceive love and its role in their lives? The purpose of this study was to give voice to people with ID themselves and provide information about their needs for love. The study analysed how seven Finnish young adults with mild ID (5 women and 2 men) aged between 18 and 31 years described love and the meaning of love in their lives in semi-structured, qualitative theme interviews. The analysis was theory-led content analysis. The findings showed that the young adults with ID could describe love primarily as emotions and concrete acts, but perceived love as knowledge and skills more difficult to describe. However, the meaning of love was considered crucial and important for everyone’s well-being. The study suggests that the views and opinions of people with ID should be given more attention so that the support and guidance they are given would better need their needs. In addition, the study highlights everyone’s right to love? As per the style. Please suggest.

Empowering practice

WEETMAN, Robert
October 2010

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"(T)his book was originally written to accompany a training course for people involved in support work. It's directed at people with the imagination and creativity to recognise that 'how we've always done things around here' isn't a good guide to good practice...The book looks in detail about what can go wrong...about how support can be disempowering...The book goes on to discuss alternative ways of working. It takes a look at what overall aims may be appropriate in support work; how different service design might help; what capacity thinking is; and it presents some ideas on how to work in an empowering way"
Version 2b

What really matters : a guide to person-centered excellence|Application for services for people with mental illness

THE COUNCIL ON QUALITY AND LEADERSHIP (CQL)
2010

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"This guide promotes quality improvement in behavioral health services and supports. These best practices and the resulting quality improvement initiatives can be applied across the range of supports and services for people with mental illness...This manual has eight main sections and each section contains a key factor with its success indicators. We use the term ‘factor’ to refer to the main area: for example, Person-centered Planning. Likewise, each factor has a number of ‘success indicators’ that describe critical aspects of the factor. For each success indicator there are three parts: a statement of the indicator; a brief explanation of the meaning behind this indicator; a description of how organizations apply this indicator in practice"

Reflecting on social roles : identifying opportunities to support personal freedom and social integration

O’BRIEN, John
June 2006

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The purpose of this resource is to "to encourage thoughtful discussion of the meaning of ‘least restrictive and most integrated’ as criteria for service adequacy. With this tool, multiple dimensions of a person's life can be examined, including: home and neighbourhood, family and friends, work, learning, spiritual and religious, community association, sports and fitness, and creative expression"
Version 1

Integrated questionnaire for the measurement of social capital

GROOTAERT, Christiaan
et al
2004

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This paper introduces a tool, the Integrated Questionnaire for the Measurement of Social Capital, with a focus on developing countries. The tool aims to generate quantitative data on six dimensions of social capital as part of a larger household survey. These dimensions are: groups and networks, trust and solidarity, collective action and cooperation, information and communication, social cohesion and inclusion, empowerment and political action. The tool was tested in Albania and Nigeria and the lessons learned are presented

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