Disability as an Ideology - Essay Example

Choose an Ideology and relate to social work practice In this article I have taken Disability as an Ideology and tried to establish the definition and history of Ideology, relationship of Disability with Ideology, the various models of Disability, the kind of social problems generated due to Disability, and their implications on the social workers dealing with the Ideology, Disability. (No. of Words: 3311) Choose an Ideology and relate to social work practice Introduction "Through framing disability, through conceptualizing, categorizing, and counting disability, we create it. We have conceptualized it as sin, a medical flaw, a health-related work limitation or some other kind of defect." Higgins, Paul. (1992) In relation to social work practice I have chosen Disability as an Ideology. Now what is Ideology Ideology is the unifying system of beliefs, attitudes, and values expressed in the superstructure of a culture. It is the body of thought and ideas that guides a society and perpetuates the status quo of the bourgeoisie. The word Ideology was first conceived by Antonio Destull de Tracy towards the end of eighteenth century to define a 'science of ideas'. The group around him became to be known as Ideologues. The term was later picked up by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels some four decades later. They lampooned their contemporaries like Ludwig Feuerbach etc. in 'Die Duetsch' Ideologies on the ground that the theories of the later are pseudo battles among merely abstract, primarily theoretical based ideas, lacking any influence on the social political scenario. This ideology is equated with religion, Meta physics, moral theory and similar products of pure consciousness. Today Ideology is considered as organized collection of ideas. An ideology can be thought of as a comprehensive vision, as a way of looking at things (compare Weltanschauung), as in common sense (see Ideology in everyday society) and several philosophical tendencies (see Political ideologies), or a set of ideas proposed by the dominant class of a society to all members of this society. The main purpose behind an ideology is to offer change in society through a normative thought process (what the world ought to be). Ideologies tend to be abstract thoughts applied to reality and thus make this concept unique to politics Disability as an Ideology Disability is an ideology because it is what society has made people to believe in. A disability is only seen as disability because society sees someone in a wheel chair as disabled. Rule 18 of the United Nations Standard Rules on the Equalization of Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities states, "States should recognize the rights of organizations of persons with disabilities to represent persons with disabilities at national, regional and local levels. States should also recognize the advisory role of organizations of persons with disabilities in decision-making on disability matters." As we have stated earlier, Ideology is a set of ideas proposed by the dominant class of a society to all members of this society, hence the disability is the set of ideas the society has proposed on the disabled people. In this sense we are talking Disability as an Ideology. Now what is disability Defining Disability is very difficult. It has multi-dimensional concept with both objective and subjective characteristics. Interpreted as an illness or impairment, Disability can be seen as fixed in an individual's body or mind. Whereas interpreted as a social context, Disability can be seen in terms of the socio-economic, cultural and political disadvantages resulting from an individual's exclusion by the non-disabled society he/she is in. Different stakeholders like persons with disabilities; Social advocacy groups, Medical practitioners, Social workers and the General public all have a different view of disability. And the meaning of Disability has evolved over the years through various perspectives such as a moral perspective, a medical perspective as well as social and human rights perspectives. Presently we will concentrate on two different models of Disability: Medical and Social Models. Medical Model of Disability In medical model of Disability the disabled person is looked upon as the problem. People influenced by the Medical Model see disabled person as pitiful, tragic and needing medical treatment. They believe society ought to take care of the disabled people. The disabled person has to fit into the world as it is. If a cure is impossible, the person has to be put away in some specialized institution, where they can be looked after. Here the emphasis is on dependence, generated by pity, fear and patronizing attitudes. The focus is on the disability, rather than the need of the person. The decision-making power about how to deal with them lies with the non-disabled persons. The power to change seems to lie within the medical and associated professions, with their talk of cures, normalization and science. Often the kind of lives they would lead is handed over to them. Other people's, usually non-disabled professionals, assessments are used to determine the kind of school to go, kind of education to give, kind of support needed, kind of work is suitable, even whether to be allowed to procreate or not. Controls are exercised over the disabled, which in turn create barriers limiting the opportunities, thereby making their lives difficult and even in some cases, impossible. This ideology pervades most societies and is evident in the way we think about disabled people; behave toward them and how we fail to allow them access to education, leisure, work and relationships. Social Model of Disability The Social approach to Disability has its roots in British history. The social model is much more developed in UK. It has been called 'the big idea' by the British disability movement (Hasler, 1993). Developed in the 1970s by activists in the Union of the Physically Impaired Against Segregation (UPIAS), it was given academic credibility via the work of Vic Finkelstein (1980, 1981), Colin Barnes (1991) and particularly Mike Oliver (1990, 1996). The social model has now become the ideological litmus test of disability politics in Britain, used by the disabled people's movement to distinguish between organizations, policies, laws and ideas which are progressive, and those, which are inadequate. The British social model contains several key elements. It claims that disabled people are an oppressed social group. It distinguishes between the impairments that people have, and the oppression, which they experience. And most importantly, it defines 'disability' as the social oppression, not the form of impairment. The core definition of the British social model comes in the UPIAS document, Fundamental Principles of Disability. Let me quote from an edited version of the document reprinted in Oliver (1996), " In our view, it is society, which disables physically impaired people. Disability is something imposed on top of our impairments by the way we are unnecessarily isolated and excluded from full participation in society. Disabled people are therefore an oppressed group in society. To understand this it is necessary to grasp the distinction between the physical impairment and the social situation, called 'disability', of people with such impairment. Thus we define impairment as lacking all or part of a limb, or having a defective limb, organism or mechanism of the body and disability as the disadvantage or restriction of activity caused by a contemporary social organization which takes little or no account of people who have physical impairments and thus excludes them from participation in the mainstream of social activities." (Oliver, 1996, 22). In his book 'No Pity: People with Disabilities Forging a New Civil Rights Movement' Josephe P. Shapiro traces the history of that movement. He identified some individual strands that eventually came together. In 1988 deaf students' protests demanding that a deaf president be installed at Gallaudet University, the country's leading college for the deaf. 'People First', an activist group of people with retardation; the development of lightweight wheelchairs by users themselves. How are Social problems constructed within Ideology As we take disability as an ideology, we have to look into the social problems in relation to disability. Let's take few examples: Firstly I will take the case pf unemployment in relation to the Disability. Unemployment refers to the condition where a person willing to work against suitable wages and seeking for work but unable to find a work The disabled people are put into disadvantages in getting proper employment. There are various reasons for them being unemployed; physical inability to work, the social factor where the employers discriminate against a disabled person in providing job or where the job offered does not commensurate to the ability and qualification of the disabled person. Let me quote from an article of 'Canadian Association of Professionals with Disabilities' to give some statistics which will give an idea of the kind of unemployment problem disabled people face: 'In Canada, according to the Statistics Canada's 2001 Participation and Activity Limitation Survey (PALS - "Disability in Canada: A 2001 Profile"), it is stated that for the core working-age adults with disabilities, age 25-54, the employment (participation) rate was at its peak with just over 51% employed compared to just over 82% for those without disabilities (a 31% difference). For older workers with disabilities, age 55-64, it is said to have been just over 27% employed compared to just over 56% for those without disabilities (a 28% difference). For youth, age 15-24, it is said to have been almost 47% employed compared to almost 57% for those without disabilities (a 10% difference). For all these age groups put together (i.e. 15-64), the employment rate for people with disabilities was almost 44% compared to just over 78% for those without disabilities (a 34% difference).' USA is no way better. As recently as 1988, 66% of the disabled were unemployed, 25% of the disabled people and their families lived in poverty. Nearly two-thirds of disabled people had not been to a movie theater in a year, 17% hadn't eaten a meal in a restaurant, and 13% had never shopped in a grocery store. As we can see from the statistics; the Disability creates the problem of unemployment, which is a serious social problem. The unemployment of the disable people results in other social problems like burden on the family members causing psychological problem. Next let's talk about another economic repercussions: Poverty. What is poverty Let me quote from World Bank Organization: "The most commonly used way to measure poverty is based on incomes. A person is considered poor if his or her income level falls below some minimum level necessary to meet basic needs. This minimum level is usually called the "poverty line". What is necessary to satisfy basic needs varies across time and societies. Therefore, poverty lines vary in time and place, and each country uses lines which are appropriate to its level of development, societal norms and values." "There are basically three current definitions of poverty in common usage: absolute poverty, relative poverty and social exclusion. Absolute poverty is defined as the lack of sufficient resources with which to keep body and soul together. Relative poverty defines income or resources in relation to the average. It is concerned with the absence of the material needs to participate fully in accepted daily life. Social exclusion is a new term used by the Government. The Prime Minister described social exclusion as "a shorthand label for what can happen when individuals or areas suffer from a combination of linked problems such as unemployment, poor skills, low incomes, poor housing, high crime environments, bad health and family breakdown"." The House of Commons Scottish Affairs Committee. There are mainly three reason for poverty of disabled people: 1) By being disabled often the person is not able to get work, hence naturally the disabled persons will be financially worse than an able bodied person, having to live on social benefits solely. 2) Often disable people will have higher cost of living due to their conditions, medical bills, special appliances they use etc. Some of them maybe bed-ridden or need regular help for daily life which increases the economic burden on them causing poverty. What are the Implications for Social Work Practice I will now go on to discuss the implications of the ideology of disability on social work practice. Generally speaking Social workers assist individuals, families, groups, and communities in coping with and/or solving problems related to mental health, poverty, illness, unemployment, substance abuse, physical (child, spouse, and elder) abuse, and substandard housing. Social workers apply their knowledge of human relations to bring into use the capabilities and resources of individuals and the community. Social work is a profession for those with a strong desire to help people, to make things better, and to make a difference. Social workers help people function the best way they can in their environment, deal with their relationships with others, and solve personal and family problems. Social workers often see clients who face a life-threatening disease or a social problem. Through direct counseling, social workers help clients identify their concerns, consider effective solutions, and find reliable resources. They help clients improve their personal and social functioning by securing needed services, education, and training. They often refer clients to other professional or community resources, and monitor and document the client's progress. Social workers tend to work independently rather than under close supervision. Some work in private practice. Others work as members of a team along with physicians, psychologists, lawyers, nurses, therapist, teachers, members of the clergy, and other professionals concerned with a client's welfare. They may also consult and work with members of a client's family. Working conditions vary with the nature of the work site, the type of employer, and the location. Social workers may work in government agency offices, hospitals, clinics, schools, prisons, reformatories, and nursing homes. Some of their duties may involve contact outside of their offices requiring travel by automobile, public transportation, or on foot. They may visit clients' homes where conditions are unpleasant or may work in neighborhoods considered to be dangerous. They may also try to help persons who do not feel they need help. The work, while satisfying, can be emotionally draining. Some of the requirements a social worker needs as qualification to discharge her/his duty satisfactorily: Working knowledge of the practices and procedures of social case work and of the social factors related to disease and disability; Ability to organize work effectively; Ability to prepare reports; Ability to get along well with others; Tact; Physical condition commensurate with the demands of the position. Specific emphasis needs to given of their approach to a disable person. The approach of Medical model will not help. The social worker needs to take the social model. Reflection on my response and critical evaluation I have given the details of the Ideology of Disability, how it affects the society and how it needs to be viewed by the social workers. Now I will give a perspective of another stakeholder i.e. General Public. The first question should be raised by General Public is which model of Disability to be followed Medical Model or Social Model. In our argument we have voiced Social model to be better than Medical model. But the British social model has opened up a new kind of approach in handling disability. As they saw the impairment as a creation of the society, it gave a new impetus to the strategy; namely barrier removal. Once it is assumed that the impairments are disabled by the society, and then the priority became to dismantle these disabling barriers, in order to promote the inclusion of people with impairments. The change in approach made it to pursue a strategy of social change rather than pursuing a strategy of medical care. They sought the ultimate solution in an anti-decimation legislation similar on the models of the Americans with Disabilities Act and the British equal opportunities and race relation's laws, as they sought to prove disability as the result of discrimination. Secondly it gave a change on the minds of the disabled people themselves. Replacing a traditional, 'medical model' view of disability - in which the problems arose from deficits in the body - with a social model view - in which the problems arose from social oppression - was and remains very liberating for disabled individuals. People started to believe that they weren't at fault: society was. They didn't need to change: it is the society, which needed change. There is no need to feel sorry or self-pity. Like other social groups such as feminist s, or lesbians and gays (asserting themselves and their demand to be counted and considered), the disabled people started to think of themselves in a totally new paradigm. Disabled activists started demanding their rights rather than the demeaning process of relying on charity or goodwill. It created different kinds of social problem. There are voices raised against Social Model of Disability. Let me quote from Tom Shakespeare and Nicholas Watson, 'The difference between our position, and that of Jenny Morris, Sally French, Liz Crow or Carol Thomas is that we believe that the 'strong' social model itself has become a problem, and that it cannot be reformed. Our claim is that the British version of the social model has outlived its usefulness. Rather than developing piecemeal criticisms or supplying alternative arguments to fill the gaps and compensate for the inadequacies of the social model, it is time to put the whole thing to one side and start again. The dangerous tendency to equate the social model with purity and orthodoxy in disability politics and disability studies has to be rejected.' They tried to substantiate that the social model is outdated and creates more problems than it solves. They summaries, ' In the conclusion, we will begin the difficult task of constructing an alternative and more adequate approach to disability politics, based on a materialist ontology of embodiment.' I believe that is the need of the hour. A new kind of approach is needed in addressing the Ideology of Disability. We have to find the role of doctors with the framework of social model of disability. Rather I would like to emphasis that all the stakeholders mainly, the disabled persons, the medical professionals, the social workers, the social activists, have to jointly create a framework. But it is not going to be an easy task. The precise role of each stakeholder has to be identified. The doctors must look into the problem as a social issue, the social activists and the disabled persons should also look at the doctor's views. Keeping the basic tenets of Social model in consideration, those problems can only be resolved by groups or collectivities working together on them; effective solutions cannot be imposed from outside or from above. BIBLIOGRAPHY Canadian Association of Professionals with Disability http://www.canadianprofessionals.org/about.htm Cornucopia of Disability Information, School of Public Health and Health Profession, University of Buffalo, The State University, New York. http://codi.buffalo.edu/graph_based/.bibliography/woodhill/.intro.html Defining disability Human Research and Development Canada, http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/asp/gateway.asphr=/en/hip/odi/documents/Definitions/Definitions003.shtml&hs= Hasler, F. (1993) Developments in the disabled people's movement. In J.Swain et al. (Eds.), Disabling barriers, enabling environments. London: Sage. Higgins, Paul. (1992) Pp. 6-7 Making Disability: Exploring the Social Transformation of Human Variation. Springfield, Il: Charles C. Thomas Marie Schoeman, Gauteng Department of Education Marinus Schoeman, University of Pretoria Disability And The Ideology Of Professionalism Oliver, Mike, Ba Phd Reader In Disability Studies Thames Polytechnic, The Individual And Social Models Of Disability, Paper presented at Joint Workshop of the Living Options Group and the Research Unit of the Royal College of Physicians, on People With Established Locomotor Disabilities In Hospitals, Monday 23 July 1990 Self Direction Community Project 2000 - 2001 http://www.selfdirection.org/dat/training Shapiro, Joseph P. No Pity: People With Disabilities Forging a New Civil Rights Movement. New York: Random House, Inc., 1993 Tom Shakespeare, Department of Sociology, University of Newcastle. Nicholas Watson, Department of Nursing Studies, University of Edinburgh. 'The social model of disability: an outdated ideology' (This article appeared in the Journal 'Research in Social Science and Disability' Volume 2, pp. 9-28 (2002)). Read More