Browsing by Department "Division of Disability Studies"

Now showing 1 - 14 of 14
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    A case study exploring disability inclusion within the Muslim Ummah in South Africa
    (2023) Mayat, Nafisa Essop; Amosun, Seyi Ladele; Galvaan Roshan
    Religion and spirituality are central to the way many people, including persons with disabilities, make sense of both the world itself, and their place in that world. However, in most scholarship focusing on disability, religion, as a way of understanding and dealing with disability, is side-lined or absent (Imhoff, 2017). Islam has a long rich history in South Africa and is currently one of the major religions here (Mahida, 2012). Followers of Islam are commonly referred to as members of the Muslim Ummah as a collective, an Ummah that includes persons with disabilities and non-disabled persons. Given the paucity of research focusing on disability in the Muslim Ummah in South Africa, this study sets out to gain insight into the way disability inclusion is enacted within the Muslim Ummah in South Africa. The research question asks: How is disability inclusion interpreted, experienced and enacted by people within the Muslim Ummah in South Africa? Adopting an interpretative qualitative research approach and applying an intrinsic case study method, the research was conducted with members of the Ummah in three major cities in South Africa, viz. Durban, Johannesburg and Cape Town. Data was generated from persons with disabilities, family members of persons with disabilities, the Ulema and a non-disabled person from the Ummah from each city. In-depth face-to-face interviews and a review of three Muslim publications were used as data gathering mechanisms. Interviews were held with seven persons with disabilities, either a physical or sensory disability, five family members of participants with disabilities, six Ulema and three non-disabled persons. All participants were aged 18 and older. Data was analysed by looking for themes that emerged from the data. Three themes, “Seen as Inferior'', “Carrying the Weight for Inclusion” and “We Are Not Doing Enough”, each with two sub-themes, emerged from the analysis. “Seen as Inferior'' and its two sub- themes, ‘' Gaze of Othering and ‘'The Deep Impact of Disability'', highlight the way in which persons with disabilities are viewed as inferior within the Ummah and how this is reflected in the gaze of non-disabled persons on persons with disabilities and their families, and the impact of this gaze. ‘'Carrying the Weight For Inclusion” emphasises the responsibility that persons with disabilities have assumed in order to be accepted into and included in the Ummah and this is demonstrated through the two sub-themes, “The Unspoken Responsibility of Negotiating Persons with Disabilities” and ‘'Negotiating the Effort to be at the Masjid”. “We Are Not Doing Enough” explains that although some aspects of inclusion are evident within the Muslim Ummah, the pace of change is very slow and inclusion remains inadequate. Sub-themes ‘'Inclusion could Create Ease and Belonging” and “Still a Journey to Travel to be Included” capture the way disability inclusion is interpreted and experienced by the participants of the study, highlighting that much work is still needed to attain full inclusion and to create ease and belonging for persons with disabilities within the Ummah. The discussion explains how the dominant discourse around disability is one that reflects an ableist, normative, colonial narrative. This narrative influences how disability inclusion is enacted within the Ummah, belabouring a move to full inclusion. The phenomenon of an unconscious exclusion of persons with disabilities within the Ummah is discussed as it emerges from this dominant discourse, together with the silence that sustains the continuation of the exclusion. The ways in which this unconscious exclusion plays out in many spaces and places significant to the lives of persons with disabilities are identified. It is proposed that, in order to achieve full inclusion and belonging for persons with disabilities within the Ummah, there needs to be a re-shaping in the thinking around disability through generating new knowledge and by challenging the dominance of the normative, ableist narrative. Informed by a decolonial turn, pathways towards full inclusion and belonging of persons with disabilities within the Ummah are proposed. It is suggested that collective action by both persons with disabilities and non-disabled persons within the Ummah is needed for full inclusion and belonging to transpire. The pathway to full inclusion and belonging would enable systemic change around disability within the Ummah to ensue and it would help move the de-colonisation project forward.
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    A participatory action research project on family needs: experiences of formal and informal support services available among Zambian families of children with autism spectrum disorders
    (2022) Nyoni, Joachim; Mckenzie, Judith; Harty Michal
    Globally, there has been an escalation in the number of children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Despite the high prevalence rates, formal and informal support services for children with ASD in Lower and Middle-Income Countries are inadequate due to several challenges. The aim of the study was to understand the experiences of parents with formal and informal support services for families of children with ASD in Zambia and explores ways to address support needs by empowering parents using a PAR approach. The study employed a qualitative Participatory Action Research (PAR) design. A total of 76 participants were purposively sampled from both rural and urban districts of the Lusaka province of Zambia. The study was divided into two phases with phase one focusing on an inquiry into the nature of the problem while phase two was planned for action. In Phase one, a total of 73 participants were recruited— 50 community members and 23 professionals. Parents participated in nine focus group discussions (FGD) while 23 professionals were involved insemistructured interviews. Phase two activities included the five-action cycles in which 17 parents participated and formed a parent-led supported group. These parents worked together for six months to address the identified barriers to ASD. The five-action cycles generated were as follows; action cycle one—forming a parent-led support group; action cycle two—being involved in ASD awareness campaigns to higher institutions of learning; action cycle three— capacity building on how to educate a child with ASD; action cycle four—, being involved in ASD awareness in rural areas; action cycle five—publishing their stories in print media. Verbatim transcription was used and data was analysed thematically. Themes were distilled through interpretive description. The key findings in the study reveal that parents face many barriers to access formal and informal services. These barriers were compounded by scarcity of knowledge about ASD at parent, professional, and community levels. ASD diagnosis and treatment included exploring religious, traditional and western medical treatments. The study found that the ASD diagnostic tools used to confirm ASD diagnosis were not uniform, and often used by poorly trained professionals. Parent-initiated support groups appear to be a positive mechanism to promote ASD awareness in both rural and urban settings. Through a parent-led support group, participants gained empowerment skills as well as a better understanding of barriers to their children unmet needs. Further studies need to extend our understanding of how parents' involvement in PAR methodologies can be used to empower and shape the nature of services that they require in Low- and Middle-income Countries.
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    Blindness, rehabilitation and identity: a critical investigation of discourses of rehabilitation in South African non-profit organisations for visually impaired persons
    (2021) Botha, Michelle; Watermeyer, Brian
    This study explores the role of rehabilitation in shaping the subjectivity of blind persons. It considers what engaging with rehabilitation services might communicate to people with visual impairments about their status, their value and their place in the world. Rather than being concerned with the practical aspects of rehabilitation, it explores how rehabilitative practices operate at the symbolic level, and interrogates the meanings about blindness which are produced within relationships where help is given and received. Drawing on Foucauldian concepts, this research traces the interplay between discourse, power and knowledge in rehabilitation services. The research design includes two phases. Through analysing the website copy of eight organisations located across South Africa, Phase One identified discourses employed by organisations as they represent themselves in the public realm. In Phase Two, semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight service providers and eighteen service users across four organisations operating in the Western Cape province of South Africa. This phase identified the discourses framing rehabilitative activities and relationships. Visually impaired participants described sight loss as a significant trauma – as dislocation from society and self – revealing that service users might be particularly vulnerable to the shaping influence of rehabilitation. Data analysis found, firstly, that the discourses which frame rehabilitation services position visually impaired service users as passive recipients in relation to the work of service providers and the gifts of the public. This positioning objectifies service users and may signal to them that they are neither valued as stakeholders nor recognised as autonomous adults, while also requiring that they demonstrate gratitude towards service providers and the public. Secondly, rehabilitation is constructed as a linear journey with strictly defined outcomes. This ‘journey discourse' relies on polarised fantasies about blindness involving, on the one hand, dependency, dislocation and struggle and, on the other, independence, integration and coping. Visually impaired service users are required to demonstrate evidence of the latter while the former shadowy figure of pre-intervention blindness must be defended against. This discourse prohibits nuance and expressions of ongoing struggle, underpinning an imperative to cope found within organisations. Amid limiting discursive practices in rehabilitation, a key finding is that visually impaired service users are involved in complex negotiations of self and place. Investigating the discourses which frame and support rehabilitative practices sheds light on investments in promoting particular ways of being for visually impaired people, prompting us to consider what service providers, service users and, indeed, society as a whole might be colluding with. This work offers a novel perspective on blindness rehabilitation in South Africa as it explores an interplay between essential practical interventions found in rehabilitation and the influences on identity which those who experience sight loss undergo as they move into a new life with visual impairment.
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    Career construction and support of D/deaf high school learners in the Eastern Cape Province
    (2021) Stemela, Unati; Kathard, Harsha; Sefotho, Maximus
    D/deaf people typically are not employed, or work in menial jobs, although they have been through high1 school in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. The researcher has not observed them in professional careers. However, there is no empirical evidence why the D/deaf are excluded from the formal labour market after schooling. Understanding the underlying factors influencing such observations was important. The problem manifested in unemployment in the formal labour sector, but the researcher wanted to understand the root cause of this problem in depth. The aim of the study is to explore and critically analyse the D/deaf high school learners' construction of their careers and the supports available to them in constructing and realising their career aspirations. The international literature reviewed identifies knowledge gaps concerning career construction and supportive imperatives of D/deaf high school learners. The theory of career construction by Savickas (2005) frames this study and has been used throughout to guide and inform the study. This is a descriptive qualitative case study of career construction and support (Creswell, 2013). It was conducted in two of the five schools for the Deaf in two districts of the Eastern Cape. The learners came from rural, semi-rural and semi-urban homes. The schools (rural and semirural) were purposefully selected to participate in the study. The study population includes four participant groups; the deaf learners in high school (grade 10 -12), their parents, the teachers involved in the career guidance of the learners and members of the Department of Basic Education who were responsible for career guidance in deaf high schools. The data was collected using multiple methods: focus group discussions, individual interviews and document reviews. The findings indicate that careers are constructed under adverse conditions. These lead to learners' perceptions of limited support. The challenges with learning the school curriculum was a barrier to acquiring basic skills required for their careers. The challenges include an inability to use of South African Sign Language, a critical barrier affecting communication across participants (learners, teachers, Department of Education officials and parents). This impacted on teaching, learning, support, guidance and general communication. The contextual challenges and limited support structures negatively influence the way D/deaf high school learners in the Eastern Cape Province construct their future careers, their parents, the education system and the role played by organisations of Deaf people. The study shows that careers are constructed in a context of both positive and negative influences. The combination of both the negative influences and limited supports impacts more heavily on career construction than do the positive influences. D/deaf people in the Eastern Cape have limited opportunities to obtain employment in professional occupations because of the way the education system and society prepares them for such careers. The issues of colonialism and the previous apartheid regime still influence both the education system and the South African society.
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    Disability and participation in physical activity and non-elite sport environments: a critical investigation of persons with disabilities experiences
    (2022) Brand, Dominique; Watermeyer, Brian; Swartz, Leslie
    Sport is often praised for its capacity to alleviate social exclusion. However, for many persons with disabilities and people trapped within the poverty cycle, sport remains elusive in terms of accessible process and practice. To better understand sport's wider inclusionary and exclusionary outcomes this study explored experiences of persons with disabilities and the assumptions, distinctions and ideologies surrounding sport as a means for social inclusion. Saxton (2018) argues that we continue to hold a narrow understanding of the nature of participation for athletes with disabilities, especially non-elite athletes. Such participation often involves barriers and exclusion, denying persons with disabilities access to psychological and physiological benefits of participation. The position that sport has gained, and held, in development reflects an understanding that sport can be a steppingstone to upward social mobility, potentially providing a means for material advancement, increased social status and occupational prestige (Carrington, 1986; Hartmann & Kwauk, 2011; Spaaij, Magee, & Jeanes, 2014). My research acknowledges the influential role sport has gained in society, whether it be for the purposes of competition, enjoyment, or development (Eitzen, 2005). The significance of this exploratory study is to contribute to the gap in knowledge surrounding persons with disabilities' perspectives and experiences of sport and physical activity participation; this will add to the sports research knowledge base from a Global South perspective, nuanced with the diversity these environments provide. The study utilised a biographical narrative approach to investigate the diverse nature of non-elite sport participation by persons with disabilities. Emphasis was placed on understanding the variety of experiences of participants from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. The research has generated ten narratives of participants from Cape Town, South Africa, all of whom indicated that sport participation was fundamentally important in their lives. Although the interviewees identified with sport participation as a core value, they also showed how opportunities to play sport are not readily available to them. In sharing their lived experiences, their unique narratives contributed to the identification of a participation framework, which is part of the main findings of the study. Key findings of the study: The participation framework acknowledges how different societal responses to disability influence a person's experiences of participation, while providing a new language to facilitate an expanded understanding of how role-players within sport environments perpetuate exclusionary practices. Within non-elite sport environments there currently remain very limited options and opportunities for persons with disabilities. In the process of gaining access to participate, the distress of navigating material/non-material barriers means that persons with disabilities often pay a premium (psychoemotional cost) for the privilege of access, with its associated positive outcomes (achieving a sense of self or being able to recast one's identity). Passive inclusion occurs in organisations that assume they practice authentic inclusivity simply by virtue of having persons with disabilities present in their structures. This approach side-steps the more complex task of unpacking exclusionary practices; it pushes the responsibility back to persons with disabilities when all they want to do is participate in sport. When saddled with the task of understanding and addressing their own exclusion it is easy to see why some persons with disabilities may withdraw and demonstrate an instinctual need to self-protect against further oppressive treatment. As reflected in current critiques of the global sport for development agenda, persons with disabilities are still only represented on the periphery of programmes and research. The framework and language produced in this study can be the starting point to support future sport for development programmes by engaging with inclusivity through understanding exclusionary practices. The theoretical and methodological implications of the study urgently call on global role-players within sport and development to take responsibility for the role they have in perpetuating such practices. A drive towards quick results and efficiency rather than a focus on changing people's lives predominates in the development world. This approach is inflicted on the Global South by virtue of vulnerability created by our need for resources from the Global North. This study offers steps towards facilitating a conversation surrounding the experiences of persons with disabilities within sport environments and the implications of these for a collective agenda to create a more inclusive, transformed society.
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    Disability representation and portrayal in selected South African soap operas: a content analysis
    (2020) Swarts, Elsonia; Ige, Busayo
    The absence of or stereotypical portrayal of persons with disabilities in the mainstream media has negative and far-reaching consequences not only for an identity of disability but for how non-disabled persons relate to persons with disabilities. Conversely, positive media portrayal and representation has the potential to challenge stereotypes and spread counter-narratives on a wide scale. This study was motivated by a perceived dearth of research into the representation of persons with disabilities in soap operas, which has been studied minimally in South Africa. The goal of the study is to contribute towards an understanding of media representation of disability and its implications in South Africa, specifically through soap opera, by investigating how South African television soap operas represent and portray disability and disability issues daily to their viewers. Drawing on relevant disability identity theory, this study used a qualitative content case study analysis of portrayal and representation of disability in two South African local soap operas, namely 7de Laan and Generations: The Legacy. These soap operas are popular among South African television audiences. The soap opera content was interpreted using qualitative content analysis by exploring the implicit and explicit representation of disability in the soap opera scenes and episodes. Contrary to the historical representation of persons with disabilities, the data revealed that persons with actual disabilities were used in the soap operas as opposed to non-disabled persons acting as if they had a disability. This positively gives a voice to persons with disabilities. However, the scenes and episodes where these characters appear are minimal and short in duration, diminishing any positive intent envisioned by including these characters in the first place. In addition, the themes that emerged from the study indicate a positive representation of persons with disabilities as contributors to the economy through their participation in work and business. At the same time, the stereotypical portrayal of ‘super cripple' in the same scenes shows how the positive representation can be rendered futile with a negative one in the same episode or scene, highlighting the importance and necessity of engaging with media representations on how they may impact individuals with disabilities in a very diverse society like South Africa.
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    Exploring a framework for decolonised disability-inclusive student walk support practices in an open and distance learning institution
    (2021) Sipuka, Olwethu; Lorenzo, Theresa; Behari-Leak; Kasturi; ‪Ngubane-Mokiwa, Sindile
    This research examined underpinning aspects of decolonised support service needs and preferences of open distance learning students with disabilities. In order to fulfil this purpose, views and perceptions of students with disabilities on the importance, availability, and accessibility of student support services were investigated. The extensive literature review done confirms the extent to which decolonisation of higher education has received prominence however, that prominence is not given to the decolonisation of support services for students with disabilities. The Capabilities Approach is utilized as the theoretical framework for this study. It coupled with the Social Model of disability channels our focus on the person's abilities rather than the impairments. Positioned as a qualitative illustrative case study, it sought to examine the factors that positively and negatively affect increased decolonisation of the higher education experiences of students with disabilities in South African universities. As the foremost Open Distance Learning institution in South Africa; the University of South Africa is the primary site for the study. Interviews with students with disabilities, the student representative council and staff members responsible for student support revealed the current experiences and perceptions of both students and staff regarding the topic. The study findings revealed key aspects of a decolonised Student Walk as being internationally relevant, students playing a pivotal role as a stakeholder, controlling worldviews, replicating inequalities and curriculum and power plays and clear strategy as a cardinal aspect of the process. It also discovered that decolonisation was not well understood by both staff and students, hypothetically pointing to many barriers than opportunities. There was disjointed institutional support initiatives that needed to be decolonised, inclusive, teaching and student support aligned. The major implications are linked to institutional level strategic support, staff training and awareness, policy reflection and strategy, inclusive initiatives and student involvement. Above all, a decolonised Student Walk framework has been proposed.
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    Exploring Pathways to Work through Skills Development in Sport for Youth with Intellectual Disabilities in Metropolitan Zimbabwe
    (2021) Kasu, Sandra; Lorenzo, Theresa; Sonday, Amshuda; Mlambo,Tecla
    Background Youth with intellectual disabilities usually experience poorer post-school outcomes than youth with any other disabilities and youth in the general population (McConkey, Dowling, Hassan & Menke, 2013). Youth with intellectual disabilities are often marginalized and discriminated against regarding skills development and work opportunities as society seems to place high value on an individual's intellect (International Labour Organisation, 2015). However, international experience shows that youth with intellectual disabilities can become valuable employees with adequate training (Scheef, 2016). Participation in sports has shown to have a positive correlation with quality of life, satisfaction with life, community reintegration, and mood as well as employment opportunities for persons with disabilities (Diaz, Miller, Krauz & Fredericson, 2019). Hence it became useful to explore skills development and vocational training opportunities in sports that could facilitate youth with intellectual disabilities to access work skills training and work opportunities in urban Zimbabwe. Aim The overall aim of the study was to explore how participation in activities related to sports organisations and events enables youth with intellectual disabilities to access livelihood opportunities to become economically active. Objectives The objectives of the study were: 1. To identify any possible skills development and vocational training opportunities for youth with intellectual disabilities in sports events and organisations in Zimbabwe. 2. To describe the personal factors of youth with intellectual disabilities that enable them to access skills development and vocational training. 3. To identify environmental factors that enable youth with intellectual disabilities to access self-employment, supported employment or formal employment. 4. To determine the role of family, caregivers, and guardians in shaping the livelihood options of youth with intellectual disabilities. 5. To determine the role of skills trainers in developing the pre-vocational skills and vocational training in general for youth with intellectual disabilities. 6. To determine the role of sports coaches and managers in shaping the life skills' development of youth with intellectual disabilities who partake in sports. Methodology The research was a qualitative study in the form of critical ethnography. Critical ethnography speaks on behalf of minority groups such as the point of view of youth with intellectual disabilities' by stating what is and how it can be changed (Duff, Rogers, and Ross, 2016). The design was a collective study as more than one study site was used. The research took place at two adult vocational training centres for youth with intellectual disabilities and at three sports events. Participants were recruited by purposive sampling. Six youths with intellectual disabilities, five parents, caregivers, or guardians of youth with intellectual disabilities, two sports managers or organisers, two sports coaches and two skills trainers of youths with intellectual disabilities participated in the study to make a total sample size of seventeen. Participation observations, semi-structured interviewing and reflective journaling were used as data collection methods. Findings Untapped work opportunities were identified for youth with intellectual disabilities who participated in sports; however, they remained as lost opportunities as they were not being fully utilized. The youths had potential enablers for employability, but they were not being given access to work opportunities. The youths were invisible to potential employers owing to the remote location of their vocational training centres. Female youths were being prejudiced regarding livelihoods' development owing to the remote nature of the training centres, which made it unsafe for them to travel there. There were limited resources for the livelihoods' development of the youth due to economic hardships the country was facing. The government's support for livelihoods' development of the youth was inadequate. Families, peers, and the community were segregating youth with intellectual disabilities, which had the effect of disempowering them and their parents regarding the youths' livelihoods' development. The parents had shared feelings of fear and anxiety over what would become of their youth once they finished school or if their parents died. There was a lack a collective action amongst the parents regarding the youths' livelihoods' development. The parents' support regarding their children's livelihoods' development was inadequate and their knowledge on how to enhance their youths' livelihoods development was insufficient. The parents were also not getting sufficient support from society to empower their youth. The youths with intellectual disabilities were often left out of economic activities at sports events and in the greater community. The sports coaches and skills trainers were not actively planning or advocating for the youths to participate in economic activities at sports events. Conclusion This study explored the livelihoods' developments that were possible for youths with intellectual disabilities through their participation in sports. It was necessary to find effective ways to develop youths with intellectual disabilities' opportunities to become economically active as engagement in work activities is a basic human right. This study established that the parents of the youths needed to take the initiative regarding the livelihoods' development of their children. The youths and their parents needed to take collective action and find their political voice to advocate for skills training and work opportunities to the training centres, the community, and potential employers as well as the government. The parents needed to take their negative perceptions, which were acting as indirect blocks and which were disempowering them, as motivators to enact positive change for their children's livelihoods' development. It was necessary for parents, skills trainers, and sports coaches to market the youths to potential employers. At the training centres, the administration, skills trainers, and sports coaches need to consider a curriculum change to include a work attachment for the youth in inclusive employment. Sports coaches and skills trainers need to teach life skills intentionally that are transferrable in work situations and provide the youth with opportunities to practice the skills learnt in work settings. The sports coaches and skills trainers needed further training on how to use sports participation as a medium to enhance the youths' livelihoods' development. Sports managers needed to incorporate youth with intellectual disabilities and their training schools in economic activities in sports organisations and at sports events. Female youths with intellectual disabilities needed to be encouraged to attend the vocational training centres by providing for their interests and providing them with safe transportation to attend the vocational training centres.
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    Health conditions and support needs of persons living in residential facilities for adults with intellectual disability in Western Cape Province
    (2013) Mckenzie, Judith A; McConkey, Roy; Adnams, Colleen M
    Background: Intellectual disability (ID) is a relatively high-incidence disability, with an increased risk of poor physical and mental health. Persons with ID also have lifelong support needs that must be met if they are to achieve an acceptable quality of life. Little is known about these health conditions and support needs in the African context. This study examines persons over the age of 18 years with ID in residential facilities in Western Cape Province. OBJECTIVE: To analyse the health conditions and support needs of persons with ID in Western Cape Province. METHOD: A survey of residents' health conditions and support needs was conducted in face-to-face interviews with the managers of 37 out of 41 identified facilities. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The survey comprised 2 098 residents (54% of them female), representing less than 2% of the estimated population of persons with ID in the province. The survey suggests that such persons experience a wide range of health conditions (notably mental health and behavioural issues) but have limited access to general health care and rehabilitation services. Furthermore, the daily living supports required for an acceptable quality of life are limited. The findings highlight the need for better health and support provision to persons with ID.
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    The development of a tool to support the work of the Rehabilitation care worker in documenting information about rehabilitation and health needs among persons with disability in home and community setting
    (2018) Hansen, Anthea; Kathard, Harsha; Cloete,Tracey-Lee
    The purpose of the study is to contribute to the development of a tool that can support the rehabilitation care worker towards intervention planning and the monitoring of their clients. The National Health Insurance and the Framework and Strategy for Disability and Rehabilitation of the South African Department of Health are strategies to work towards accessible, affordable, equitable and quality health care, which includes health promotion, disease prevention, curative, rehabilitation and palliative services for all South Africans. Both strategies emphasise the use of community health workers and mid-level workers as a key component of primary health care. In the Western Cape provincial Department of Health a new cadre, namely the rehabilitation care worker has been introduced as a member of the rehabilitation team. The introduction of the rehabilitation care worker is still in the pilot phase. The rehabilitation care workers face many barriers to providing effective care. One such challenge is the lack of a contextually relevant resource tool to collect information on the rehabilitation and health needs of persons with disabilities. The aim of the study was to develop a contextually relevant resource tool that would support the rehabilitation care worker in understanding and documenting how the rehabilitation and related health needs of persons with disabilities are met in home- and community-based settings. Three specific objectives were defined: i) to develop the content and domains of the rehabilitation and health information tool; ii) to establish the validity (face and content) of the rehabilitation and health information tool; and, iii) to test the application of the rehabilitation and health information tool on a sample of persons with disabilities. This study was an exploratory descriptive study adopting a sequential mixed methods design. There were two phases in this study. Phase 1 involved qualitative research methods in the development of the rehabilitation and health information tool through the use of document review and a focus group discussion with experts. Phase 2 of the study involved quantitative research methods in the field testing of the rehabilitation and health information tool by the rehabilitation care workers on a sample of persons with disabilities. The results of phase 1 included the development of the rehabilitation and health information tool, which was deemed by the experts to be a comprehensive, contextually relevant tool with face and content validity and could be easily administered by the rehabilitation care worker. The conceptual framework of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health provided domains that could comprehensively document the multidimensional needs of persons with disabilities. The result was a draft rehabilitation and health information tool with 17 questions ranging across the domains of activities of daily living, sexual health, health behaviours, barriers and facilitators to good health, finance and understanding of disability. Changes were proposed to the wording, layout and flow of the tool and the persons with disabilities’ goals were included as an element . The inclusion of the end users as experts in the development resulted in a richer understanding needed for the shaping of this tool. The results of phase 2 highlighted that the rehabilitation and health information tool was able to describe the rehabilitation and health needs of persons with disabilities. Additionally the tool was able to document the specific goals of the persons with disabilities which is useful to plan and monitor intervention. The rehabilitation care workers reported the tool to be useful, easy to use, and provided a structured manner to collect information. They also reported that it was useful in stimulating conversations on sensitive topics. However, it was indicated that it took too long to complete and there were components that were incomplete. The rehabilitation and health information tool requires further refinement, validation and further follow-up testing before it can be formally adopted and implemented as part of the rehabilitation care worker’s standard practice.
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    There's a place for people with disabilities within the arts: Exploring how interaction with the performing arts may facilitate the social and economic inclusion of youth with disabilities
    (2018) Le Roux, Marlene; Lorenzo, Theresa; Kathard, Harsha
    This study aims to explore how interaction with the performing arts could facilitate the participation of youths with disabilities in opportunities for social and economic inclusion. Equal access for all is a dream, as the world is still a disabling place, particularly for women, poor, Black and persons with a disability. As a result of this intersectionality of social identities and oppression, a lack of access to mainstream activities and opportunities remains a day-to-day reality for many persons with disabilities (Le Roux, 2015). Persons with disability yearn for the individual freedoms enjoyed by most other members of society. One vehicle through which people with disabilities can further enrich themselves are through cultural and arts events. The 2006 United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) universally recognised the right of people with disabilities to: ● Access work opportunities (Article 27); and ● Take part in cultural life with others (Article 30), i.e., ensuring that people with disabilities have adequate access to these activities. This study aims to explore how youth with disabilities’ exposure to theatre performance, visiting the theatre or attending a workshop can derive benefit regarding their awareness and prospects for social and economic inclusion. The objectives of this study are to: 1. Describe the experience of youth with disabilities attending a performance at Artscape. 2. Describe how being at Artscape influences or expands career aspirations of youth with disabilities related to economic and social inclusion. 3. Describe the social and life skills learned through attending a performance or visiting Artscape as a facility. 4. Identify factors that influence the participation of youth with disabilities in attending performances and events at Artscape. 5. Investigate how participation in performing arts contributes to their social and economic inclusion. This study used a qualitative research approach, using critical ethnography methodology. Primary data was obtained from an in-depth interview with a young, Black disabled woman and three focus group discussions of six participants. Secondary data in the form of questionnaires were quantitatively analysed This research revealed that transport remains a major challenge for disabled youth seeking to interact with the arts. While disability is diverse and each disability is unique in itself, contact with the arts has been found to facilitate social and economic inclusion and trigger the empowerment of these youth. This was seen in the four themes that came out of the findings namely; Blown away, I can do it, you can do it, Embracing Hope, and a long way to go. Hence, accessibility has varying meanings for different kinds of disability. There remains a huge gap for people with disabilities to be included in social and economic activities, and as a result, youth with disabilities are still trapped in a world of exclusion. I have therefore proposed an Inclusive Model of Disability for Social and Economic inclusion, which are based on the same four themes that I derived from the findings, as well as a fifth theme entitled; Toward social and Economic Inclusion. Based on this model I have also discussed what the findings have shown under four themes; Artscape as a catalyst for inclusion, Career Aspirations, Social and Life Skills, and Enabling Social and Economic Participation. This study concludes that potential exists for disability inclusion and participation in the performing arts, and refers to numerous implications for the education, livelihoods, social and empowerment sectors to consider based on the CBR components of inclusive development, as well as some recommendations beyond Artscape.
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    Transfer-related experiences of people with spinal cord injury living in low socioeconomic, independent living communities in Johannesburg as seen in the context of relationships of personal assistance - a phenomenological study
    (2019) Jessen, Ronel; Watermeyer, Brian P
    This dissertation begins from the research question “How do the nature and availability of transfers influence the lived experiences of people with spinal cord injury (PWSCI) in low socio-economic independent living communities (ILC) in the context of personal assistance relationships?” Transfers here, refers to the need for people with severe mobility impairments to be lifted or otherwise assisted in moving between locations such as bed and wheelchair, wheelchair and toilet, wheelchair and vehicle, and so forth. “Personal assistance means that users of such service exercise the maximum control over how services are organised, and custom-design their services according to their individual needs, capabilities, life circumstances and aspirations” (Ratzka, 1992, p.1). PWSCI, as is the interest of this study, have unique insights into their disability and their context. In terms of international human rights conventions, PWSCI are entitled to have control over their lives and therefore must participate in the form of consultancy on issues that concern them directly. Many PWSCI are dependent on assistance from others for transfers during activities of daily living (ADL). ADL refers to everyday activities such as rising, dressing, washing, toileting, eating, and so on. In the lives of PWSCI, access to the means of performing ADL equates, in reality, to access to the means of survival. In low socio-economic communities, it is likely that personal assistance is performed by unpaid family members or friends, or low remunerated untrained personal assistance providers, rather than paid, professionally trained employees. Unpaid / low remunerated and untrained personal support has implications for i) the ready availability of transfers, ii) the safety of transfers, and iii) reciprocal dynamics of care and accommodation within the relationship. PWSCI represent a large portion of the South African population. Besides those already stated, a body of research shows that PWSCI may face particular limitations and obstacles in fulfilling of ordinary or normal life. These obstacles may include negative attitudes, structures of normalcy and ableism, and environmental barriers to access for PWSCI. These obstacles may influence how PWSCI construct their identity within relationships of personal assistance. Also, the voices and own experiences from the perceptions of PWSCI are not always heard and not given political recognition. This research aimed to explore the transfer-related experiences of PWSCI, in the context of personal assistance relationships, during activities of daily living. A qualitative study was conducted, and focused on the experiences and perceptions of nine PWSCI living in low socio-economic independent living communities (ILC) in Johannesburg. A semi-structured interview was used for data collection, and a Qualitative Thematic Analysis was applied to analyse the data. Ethics of Care (EoC) was a useful theoretical approach adopted in exploring the lived experiences of PWSCI in the interest of their taking back agency within relationships of personal assistance, being free of any assumptions and perceptions about impairment and their ability. Furthermore, the aim of an EoC approach is to foster inclusion, respect and dignity, and systems of influence and power, influencing the experiences and personal perceptions of PWSCI living in low socio-economic independent living communities (ILC). The results of this study revealed that PWSCI find living with a spinal cord injury not being a barrier to living a fulfilling life but instead, emphasised barriers created through stigma and negative attitudes from relationships within personal assistance and communities as a whole. These serious barriers to self-expression and fulfilment come in the form of stigma of disability, ableism, negative perceptions, and the pervasiveness of the medical model. How PWSCI feel about their belonging in their society and taking back their agency in relationships of personal assistance, was found to be representative of how they respond to negative social constructions of disability within care relationships, and their communities as experienced during daily transferrelated activities. The study revealed the importance of the need for accredited training for personal assistance providers to prevent secondary injury for PWSCI and care providers alike, and to create conducive working environments for care providers. Conducive working environments may include body mechanic training, appropriate assistive devices for safe lifting and moving of PWSCI. Furthermore, conducive working environments may contribute to positive attitudes and perceptions toward PWSCI. Access to allocated state resources will facilitate PWSCI to procure accredited, trained, paid care. The vocation of personal assistance providers should be organised, available and accredited.
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    Voices through my hands: An auto-ethnographic study of the lived experiences of a South African child of Deaf adults
    (2018) Harrison, Jane; Watermeyer, Brian
    There is a dearth of literature about the lived experiences of hearing children of Deaf adults (CODAs) within the South African context that this study attempts to address. Most African publications examining issues of Deafness focus on the experience of Deaf people themselves. Not much attention is given to the fact that children of Deaf adults may have their own experiences which are tied to the Deafness of their parents. Through a critical examination of my own experiences as a CODA, I sought to answer the following question: In which ways has my position in my family as a CODA, my identification as a Coloured person, my gender, and the context of Apartheid South Africa influenced my sense of self? Aim: The aim of the study is to provide the reader with rich, first-person information regarding the social, political and cultural circumstances of my formative years, in the context of being female, coloured, and having parents who are Deaf, against the backdrop of the South Africa of the 1980s. I draw attention to the intersections within my life as a bicultural, Coloured female in South Africa. Using a qualitative research method, auto-ethnography (specifically an evocative ethnographic method) to generate and analyse data, I endeavour to connect my story to wider cultural, political and social processes. The analysis was informed by literature from d/Deaf studies and a conceptual framework that included models of disability, the notion of intersectionality, and theoretical ideas concerning identity formation. Objectives: I explore: i) the key elements of context that combined to shape my experience of being raised as a CODA; ii) my experiences of identity formation; iii) the ways in which the intersection of various social life attributes that include race, gender, bicultural identity, and disability have intersected to frame my lifeworld as a CODA. Methodology: I used the auto-ethnographic approach and specifically, evocative autoethnography. I drew upon the thematic analysis method to analyse the data. Findings: The auto-ethnographic material depicts my lived experience as a CODA. A key finding relates to bicultural identity formation in a context of South Africa that has been profoundly shaped by Apartheid. While negotiating a terrain that is characterised by rampant racial discrimination and the difficulties that surround an identity that is both of the Deaf and hearing worlds, my story shows up a number of active responses to my life-world, rather than a passive acceptance and internalisation of its contradictions. Conclusion: This study supports the use of auto-ethnography as a way of exploring the experience of identity formation in CODAs in a context where the ambiguities of life as a CODA are complicated by identity intersections with race, gender and culture.
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    We should be given a chance: identifying barriers and enablers from disabled people's employment in the office of the Premier of the Eastern Cape Provincial Government, South Africa
    (2008) Loyilane, Ndileka Eumera Portia; Lorenzo, Theresa
    Disabled people have not been part of the employment processes, especially within government. They have always been encouraged to pursue income-generating projects like sewing, knitting or carpentry. These ventures have resulted in very few disabled people becoming employed in the formal sector and thus being part of the economic growth of the country. The aim of the study was to determine the barriers and enablers to the employment of disabled people in the Provincial Government of the Eastern Cape. The literature review investigates the reasons why disabled people have not been involved in mainstream activities. lt also elaborates on why disabled people have felt the need to advocate for their inclusion in mainstream activities, especially employment, and how this lobby has led to the inclusion of disability in the Constitution, the Bill of Rights (Republic of South Africa, 1996), and further the formulation and adoption of the Employment Equity Act (Department of Labour, 1998). Literature on the barriers to the employment of disabled people is lacking, and most writers refer to the challenges of disabled people who are already employed. Using a qualitative, descriptive research design, a case study approach was utilised to explore the employment experience of disabled people in Office of the Premier (OTP) of the Eastern Cape Provincial Government. Purposive sampling was used to select participants from the OTP, an NGO working in the disability field and members of a Disabled People's Organisation. Data collection included semi-structured interviews and a focus group discussion. The interviews were transcribed, and the concepts that emerged were grouped into categories and then further grouped together to form a theme. Three themes emerged, namely, Paying lip service, Perceptions of disability and Giving disabled people opportunities. The discussion explored the disabling and enabling factors under three subheadings: firstly, creating accessible environments; secondly, transforming recruitment strategies for implementing policies; thirdly, challenging and changing attitudes and myths; and lastly, integrating skills development as an area which plays a central role in ensuring that all the abovementioned factors result in the employment of disabled people. However, the study shows that despite the existence of the legislative framework, disabled people still continue to be unemployed. Recommendations included the suggestion of road shows and sensitisation programmes undertaken to assist in fast tracking the employment of disabled persons in the Office of the Premier of the Eastern Cape Provincial Government.