Exploring sexual and reproductive health education for individuals labeled as intellectually disabled – A constructivist grounded theory

Abstract

Discourses regarding intellectual disability (ID) have traditionally excluded people with this label from sexual and reproductive health education (SRHE). While politically, much has changed, deficit-oriented narratives about labeled people remain and threaten their access to sexual and reproductive health services. Although SRHE providers in Germany are described as crucial for labeled people's sexual literacy, critical and in-depth analyses of SRHE providers' accounts are lacking thus far. To address this gap, people that offer SRHE to labeled individuals in Bavaria, Germany, were interviewed virtually. Data were collected until the categories were saturated, leading to 14 interviews. One core category was constructed using a constructivist grounded theory: ‘promoting integration through SRHE.’ Overall, participants described SRHE as an important part of labeled people's education that aims to facilitate sexual autonomy. Nevertheless, the analysis illustrates how participants recreated traditional narratives about ID and sexuality, despite their attempt to advocate for their target group. This highlights the pervasiveness of deficit-oriented discourses and stresses the need for questioning cognitive ableism to address the root causes of stigmatization that limit the sexual health of labeled people.