Disabilities In Israel Research Articles

Politics of geographic exclusion: deinstitutionalization, hegemony and persons with intellectual disability in Israel

Deinstitutionalization is a core policy for the development of services for people with intellectual disabilities (ID) in western countries. Nonetheless, although a western country, deinstitutionalization is not well advanced in Israel. In order to shed light on this phenomenon, we explore the hegemony of ID as reflected in Israeli legislation. The analysis shows a biomedical hegemony; ID is depicted as a form of medical and social deviance. Israel’s legislation reflects paternalistic views of persons with ID, who are largely seen as vulnerable objects of pity, to be cared for and protected.

Setting policies regarding leisure activities for youths with disabilities: who will accept this mission?

ABSTRACTThe term “policy” describes both decisions and the management processes to implement them. The purpose of this study is to review policies regarding leisure activities for youths with disabilities. In many Western countries, this policy is explicit and work is being carried out to implement it. This article presents a case study carried out in Israel, which upholds the Special Education Law established in 1988 (and last amended in 2014) and where the rights of youths with disabilities are recognized and addressed within the formal education system. In an attempt to examine non-formal education policies regarding leisure activities for young people with disabilities in Israel, we interviewed 18 officials who are responsible, either directly or indirectly, for planning and carrying out leisure activities for this population. Participants were asked about the need for leisure activities for youths with disabilities and the available options that exist. The findings indicate disparity between participants' understanding of the needs, and the currently limited options for leisure for youths with disabilities. We attempt to explain this contradiction by highlighting the conspicuous absence of regulations regarding the implementation of the Equal Rights Act regarding leisure opportunities for youths with disabilities, and the resulting consequences.

Predictors of the Self-Reported Likelihood of Seeking Social Worker Help among People with Physical Disabilities

ABSTRACTThe current study assesses the association between demographic factors, attitudes toward social workers, the stigma attached to seeking social worker help, perceived social support, and psychological distress—and the self-reported likelihood of seeking social worker help, among people with physical disabilities in Israel. Data collection utilized structured questionnaires, administered to a sample of 435 people with physical disabilities. The findings suggest that women, older respondents, people with more positive attitudes toward social workers, with higher levels of psychological distress and of social support, and with a lower level of stigma, reported a greater likelihood of seeking social workers help. The study’s conclusion is that there are certain avoidance factors among people with physical disabilities that might discourage them from seeking social workers’ help. Therefore, it is important that social workers identify these factors and develop interventions aimed at encouraging people with physical disabilities to seek social workers help in case of need, and also develop practices adjusted to the unique needs of people with physical disabilities.

Perceived social support as a moderator between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities in Israel

Purpose: Perceived social support has gained importance as a significant preventive factor of depressive symptoms and as helpful for rebuilding feelings of self-worth and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities. The current study examined whether perceived social support moderates the association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities in Israel.Materials and methods: Data were collected by means of structured questionnaires among a convenience sample of 433 people with physical disabilities in Israel and hierarchical multiple regression was performed.Results and conclusions: The findings reveal that perceived social support has a moderating role in the association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities, such that those with low and moderate levels of perceived social support showed a negative association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being, while those with high levels of perceived social support showed no association between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being. Findings are discussed in light of the social model of disability, and practical implications are suggested.Implications for RehabilitationA negative association was found between perceived discrimination and subjective well-being among people with physical disabilities with low and moderate levels of perceived social support.Professionals working with people with physical disabilities must acknowledge the importance of social support for people with physical disabilities and for their families.Professionals working with people with physical disabilities should take a proactive approach to locating disabled people who do not receive or do not have adequate social support and offer them assistance.Professionals working with people with physical disabilities should engage in wide social activities aimed at providing resources and opportunities to service beneficiaries.Society bears the collective responsibility to act in order to reduce the social problem of discrimination against people with disabilities, as well as to raise public awareness of this issue.

Sustainability of Disability-Related Services in Canada and Israel: Will the Real Universal Design Please Stand Up?

We have examined the sustainability of providing services for students with disabilities in higher education in Canada and Israel. The two countries differ in their approaches: Israel subscribes to the accommodations model of service delivery; Canada, to the universal design approach. Case examples of services to students with disabilities in Canada and Israel are used to illustrate these approaches in a descriptive, illustrative study of 214 students with disabilities in Israel and the 127 in Canada who self-reported a disability and who had or had not registered for disability-related services from their school. Contrary to expectation, the Canadian sample (universal design) had a larger proportion of students with disabilities registered for disability-related services than the Israeli sample (accommodations model). Moreover, in Israel, disability- related services were extended to more diverse populations. While the universal design model has the potential to enhance sustainability of disability-related services in higher education, this has yet to be demonstrated empirically. Recommendations for increasing sustainability through universal design are made.

Challenging behavior among institutionalized adults with intellectual disability in Israel: a comparison of measurements and definitions

Objectives: Challenging behavior (CB) is used as a diagnostic label among service providers. For persons with intellectual disability (ID) this label holds important implications such as placement in segregated housing and extreme stigmatization. Therefore, the ways through which service providers define and measure CB holds great importance. This study compared the nature and extent of differences between the way CB is measured in institutionalized adults with ID among service providers with a valid CB tool (Challenging Behavior Scale, CBS).Methods: A survey was conducted among 53 institutionalized adults with ID in Israel. Data were collected via a close ended questionnaire from key staff members.Results: We found that staff's definitions of CB did not align with CBS scores.Conclusions: Given the far reaching implications of the CB label among persons with ID, it is highly important that service providers relay on valid measurements.

Factors in the Adjustment and Academic Achievement of College Students with Learning Disabilities in Israel

The number of students with learning disabilities (LD) who attend postsecondary education has increased steadily over the past 20 years. This study examines the contribution of internal (academic self-efficacy and attachment style) and external (social support and institutional support) factors to the adjustment and achievement of students with LDs in the academic setting. Participants were 674 students from 24 institutions of higher education in Israel. The experimental group (n = 338) consisted of students with self-reported LD, the control group (n = 336) were students who reported they did not have an LD. Our hypothesis that students with LD would report lower academic achievements and lower levels of adjustment than would students with no LD was confirmed. A further hypothesis, that internal and external factors would both be associated with adjustment and academic achievements of LD students, was confirmed by a Structural Equation Modeling Analysis. These findings emphasize the importance of social, family and environment in the success of students with LD in higher education.

Social Space and Field as Constructs for Evaluating Social Inclusion

AbstractThis paper addresses the role of evaluation in promoting social inclusion, an important component of social justice, with a focus on exclusion resulting from physical disability. We argue that the evaluation of social exclusion and social inclusion requires evaluators not only to reconsider their role and methods, but also to revise the fundamental constructs through which they study how programs and other interventions generate change at the individual, group, community, and societal levels. Drawing on field theory, we suggest that social inclusion processes can be understood and assessed in terms of the expansion of individuals’ life space, which consists of social, political, cultural, and resource dimensions. The paper illustrates these constructs with data from a participative action evaluation of a pilot program for providing services to people with disabilities in Israel. Our aim in developing these constructs is to provide not only tools for assessment, but also ways of thinking that may enable socially excluded people to be more active agents of inclusion.

A Comparative Approach to Revising Sub Minimum Wage Assessment Policy: The Case of Israel

The article examines a proposed model for assessing Sub Minimum Wage (SMW) for persons with disabilities in Israel, with reference to the committee of experts of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor. The article uses a “quasi benchmarking approach”, comparing SMW the year mentioned in the abstract is not a note or reference, it is the year that the committee described in the article, was held. It can be however, removed from the abstract as long as it is mentioned in the text assessment practices in Israel, the United States and Australia. The paper discusses the merit of using such an approach and whether the proposed model, which has been accepted by the government, reflects a significant change in SMW assessment practices in Israel, and concludes that the model introduces an incremental rather than a meaningful change.

Young Children With Disabilities in Israel

This article aims to analyze early intervention programs in Israel according to the Developmental Systems Model (Guralnick, 2001), in an attempt to identify strengths and areas for further development for service delivery for young children with disabilities in Israel. Early intervention in Israel i

Beyond the trends: policy considerations in psychiatric rehabilitation

Beyond the trends in the use of rehabilitative services in response to a new policy and its fiscal incentives, it is important to consider the effectiveness and quality of the services provided to individuals with mental disabilities in Israel. What is known about the outcomes of different rehabilitative services, and what is their value compared to other types of health and mental health services? Can typical health insurance be used to finance such services? These are some of the broader international questions raised by this report on the impact of a new law encouraging rehabilitation services in the community for individuals with psychiatric disabilities.

Trends in the use of rehabilitation services in the community by people with mental disabilities in Israel; the factors involved

BackgroundIn 2001, the Rehabilitation of the Mentally Disabled Law was implemented, defining a basket of rehabilitation services to which people with mental disabilities are entitled.ObjectivesTo describe change over time in the characteristics of applicants to rehabilitation committees, types of referral agencies, and the proportion of those referred who were admitted. To identify factors affecting implementation of decisions to admit people with mental disabilities into different rehabilitation services and predictors of the length of time they remain in the services.MethodsThe study population consisted of all applicants to rehabilitation committees during 2001-2008. Rehabilitation services included hostels, supported housing, and vocational services. Data were extracted from Ministry of Health rehabilitation and psychiatric hospitalization case registers. Findings were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Kaplan-Meier survival analyses, and Cox regressions.ResultsThere was a trend over time for more patients with shorter or no psychiatric hospitalization histories to be referred to rehabilitation services. Moreover, there was an increase in the proportion of referrals from the community, although the majority of referrals still came from psychiatric hospitals. Less than half of those recommended for a rehabilitation program were admitted and remained in a rehabilitation facility for one year or more. One factor predicting participants' longer stays in rehabilitation services after hospitalization was the proximity of the committees' decisions to the hospitalization. Another factor was the patient receiving vocational services while in residential care.ConclusionAlthough over time the new law has resulted in a broader spectrum of people with mental disabilities receiving rehabilitation services, additional efforts are needed to enable them to remain in the system for a sufficient amount of time. Programs addressing specific needs should be developed accordingly.

Residential care centers for persons with intellectual disability in Israel. Trends in the number of children 1999–2008

In 1998, a questionnaire was developed by the Health Services, Office of the Medical Director at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Social Services. This questionnaire was aimed to assess, on a yearly basis, the health of the residents with intellectual disability and the services provided to them by specific residential care centers within Israel. The present study was conducted to examine trends in the number of children with intellectual disability in residential care centers in Israel during 1999-2008. We demonstrated a clear downward trend with regard to the percent of children living in residential care facilities, from 18.1% of the total population in 1999 to 12.8% in 2008.

Aging people with intellectual disability in Israel

The proportion of adults with intellectual disability (ID) who are in need of support with various aspects of personal care is already significant at age 40 years. The aim of this study was to learn about the personal, social, and health characteristics of older people with ID in Israel and to examine their needs and the solutions provided. A cross-sectional and nationwide study collected data about people with ID aged 40 years and older. Formal and informal caregivers were interviewed about medical data and about their own characteristics and needs. The percentage of people with severe and profound ID was 29% and among those living with their families 21%, compared with 3% in hostels and small group homes. Differences in age distribution were found in the various housing settings. A significant correlation was found between the level of intellectual disability and the activities of daily living. As age increased, contact and involvement with family members declined. The use of medical services increased with age in all out-of-home settings. It is possible to compare the differential needs of different age groups, which helps us understand the implications of aging for the populations in the various settings.

A social-historical perspective on the development of sports for persons with physical disability in Israel

The purpose of this essay is to describe the main developments within Israel of sports for persons with a disability across the 60 years of Israel's existence. Following introductory remarks on the global development of this aspect of sports in relation to Israel's cultural context, the early leaders, who established sports for persons with disability in Israel, are acknowledged. In the next section, the official structures governing and facilitating organized sports for participants with a disability are portrayed, leading up to an account of Israel's participation in the Paralympic Games. Trends in participation of male and female athletes and the medals gained between 1960 and 2004 are highlighted and discussed. This review of Paralympic accomplishments is concluded with a comprehensive description of the events related to hosting the Paralympic Games in 1968. Current trends and future directions, encompassing the need for increasing grassroots level participation and governmental support, as well as the issues of female under representation and differences in support systems provided to Israeli Defence Force veterans compared to those with disabilities due to other causes, sum up this essay.

Human Rights of Children with Disabilities in Israel - The Vision and the Reality

The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, from 1989, and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, from 2007, define a vision in which party States ensure the welfare of children with disabilities and their right to enjoy a full and respected life in the community, with their families, in conditions which meet their basic needs and ensure their ability to actualize their potential, enjoy basic liberty, freedom of expression, active and inclusive participation in the community life, based on equal opportunities. Approximately 8.7% of the children in Israel cope with functional challenges, disabilities or chronic diseases requiring constant intervention through medical or non medical care. The aim of the current article is to outline the international vision defined by the Conventions and the situation in Israel regarding the rights of children with disabilities to life, life with family in the community, education, health and accessibility – as legislated and as actually implemented. The article shows that Israel is committed to the international conventions and has invested much in legislation, budget and services for ensuring the social rights of children with disabilities in all areas of life. However Israel still faces the challenges of carrying out the paradigm shift towards the human rights model of disability in practice, by ensuring equal opportunities; by abolishing the poverty and discrimination of the geographical and social periphery; and by implementing inclusive education and accessible public areas and services to all.

Residential care centers for persons with intellectual disability in Israel. Trends in cancer mortality during 1991-2005

Residential care centers for persons with intellectual disability in Israel. Trends in cancer mortality during 1991-2005

Israeli parents' involvement with their adult children with intellectual disabilities after placement in institutional care: a national study

This Israeli national study examined a research model predicting parental behavioral involvement with their adult children several years after their placement in institutional care. The sample studied consisted of 278 parents of children with intellectual disabilities in Israel between January 1993 and December 2001. Predictors of behavioral involvement were analyzed by a path analysis, followed by several differential regression analyses. Parental behavioral involvement with their adult children after placement is differential, and explained primarily by the children's gender and age at placement. Parental behavioral involvement with their daughters is predicted by cognitive and emotional involvement, whereas their behavioral involvement with their sons is related to background data. The child's age at the time of placement also plays a role in predicting parental involvement. Parental behavioral involvement with their children is related to gender and age at the time of placement in institutional care. Longitudinal research should be carried out to track the involvement process.

"Environmental Justice" and Persons with Disabilities in Israel

The decades of unsuccessful efforts to legislate and implement legislation in the area of accessibility for persons with disabilities in Israel have shown that in order to promote a social, geographical, ecological revolution in the lives of persons with disabilities there is a need for a relevant, attractive conception and language that will enable the Israeli society to make a paradigm shift in this matter. This article introduces the concept of "environmental justice", which was defined in the 1998 Aarhus Convention, as a meta-conception that might be helpful to advance its three main components pertaining to disability: 1) the right to environmental accessibility; 2) the right to information about citizens' rights; and 3) the right to take part in the decision-making process. This article describes how the three components of the "environmental justice" concept are presented in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and in the local legislation and implementation thereof in Israel, with an emphasis on the decisive contribution of the Equal Rights of Persons with Disabilities Law, 5758 — 1998. This article shows that Israeli society has already acknowledged the importance of the concept in legislation and through active participation by policy makers, organizations, and planning professionals a new vision of an accessible reality is being formed. However, Israel is still in the initial stages of implementation. Key elements and factors that will increase the probability of making this environmental-justice revolution happen include: the existence of an international convention; relevant new and comprehensive legislation and conceptions; an Israeli Equal Rights Commission; and an active civil society and committed urban planners

The Social Value of Death Versus Disability in Israel: Why It is Better to Die for Your Country

This study seeks to understand the different ways in which Israeli media depicted Israelis killed, wounded and disabled during the first six months of the Al-Aqsa Intifada (29 September 2000 — 1 April 2001). Specifically, this paper examines how the news articles differed in content when the individual was killed versus wounded and disabled. A content analysis using terrorism search terms in Yediot Ahronot, a popular Hebrew-language newspaper in Israel, was conducted. The results illustrate a vast disparity in the number of articles written about Israelis killed versus Israelis wounded. This occurred despite the fact that for every Israeli killed, twelve more were injured during the time period of this study. Additionally, content differences existed in the news articles if individuals were killed as opposed to wounded and disabled. While this paper cannot definitively explain these differences, several possible explanations are suggested.