Exploring disability through the lens of moral experience

Abstract

Physical therapy researchers, and other researchers in the field of rehabilitation, have a range of methodological and theoretical approaches that they can bring to the analysis of disability experience. Among this array of options, moral experience presents a valuable framework. In this paper, we present a conception of moral experience that we have developed drawing upon anthropological and hermeneutical sources, and discuss its relevance for qualitative research inquiry. We define moral experience as encompassing: ‘a person’s sense that values that he or she deem important are being realized or thwarted in everyday life. This includes a person’s interpretations of a lived encounter, or a set of lived encounters, that fall on spectrums of right–wrong, good–bad or just–unjust’. This conceptual framework can be employed to guide qualitative research examining a range of topics. In our experience, it holds a particular salience for exploring phenomena related to disability. We illustrate this discussion by presenting research on the moral experience of families with children who receive mechanical ventilation at home to support their respiration. This study illustrates how research focusing on moral experience can illuminate facets of living with disability that might not be made visible with other research approaches. We also suggest research questions in physical therapy and rehabilitation science for which moral experience would provide a valuable conceptual framework for orienting qualitative research inquiry.