Persons With Disabilities

Abstract

The title of this chapter is “Persons With Disabilities.” Although it is a basic title, for some people I have already taken a stand. To use the term disabled person instead of person with a disability is thought by many to be politically incorrect because disabled person suggests that the only thing worth mentioning about the person is the disability. The American Psychological Association (APA, 2010) advocates the use of person-first language to maintain the integrity of all individuals as human beings and avoid inferring that the whole person is disabled. Putting the person first is standard practice within the medical model of disability. The medical (and dominant) model of disability locates the problem of disability within the individual. Health professionals diagnose and attempt to treat or otherwise address the impairments that people “have.” The social model of disability, however, locates the problem of disability within society. Developed within the civil and human rights movements, the social model indicates that impairments do not cause disabilities. Instead, any problems arise from a society that is unaccommodating. Societies disable people through such avenues as poor building design, limited access to information (e.g., documents not available in Braille), unequal opportunities, and prejudiced attitudes. Because it is society that places limits on what people with impairments can achieve, according to the social model the term disabled person is not derogatory; it is a commentary on society, not the person. Nevertheless, whether it is because of my indoctrination in the medical model or my years of abiding by APA format, I have chosen to use person-first terminology, even though I agree that there would be fewer issues with disabilities if the world was a completely accommodating place.