Disability–Culture–Society: Strengths and weaknesses of a cultural model of dis/ability

Abstract

Drawing on the approach of disability studies this article claims the relevance of culture as an analytical category for the study of disability. It starts with differentiating several fields of research that focus on disability; then it explores the notion of culture. Next, it appreciates the social model of disability, sketches its history and resulting debates. It also provides an overview on earlier attempts of conceptualizing a cultural studies approach to disability. Further, it offers an analytical perspective that uses the concept of “dis/ability”, analyses impairment, disability and normality as “empty signifiers”, views dis/ability as naturalized and embodied difference, and understands this category as effected by symbolic orders, bodily practices and social institutions. Additionally, referring to the debate on independent living as an example, this article highlights the heuristic value of the cultural model of dis/ability for both research and practice by describing guiding questions resulting from individual, social and cultural models of disability. It concludes by discussing possible pitfalls of a cultural studies approach to dis/ability.