SOCW 6051 Wk9 Responses to Discussions 1 and 2

SOCW 6051 Wk9 Discussion 1 Responses neededTop of Form

SOCW 6051

Respond  by refuting or supporting either your colleagues' analysis of the marginalization and oppression of individuals with disabilities or supporting or refuting their analysis of the role of the social worker in working with clients with disabilities. Follow APA for citing and referencing. Must contain references and citations. The references in the original post can be used for citations and references

 

AI’s Post

Historically those who have disabilities have been marginalized and there are various reasons why. Historically speaking robbery, assault, and rape is four times as likely for someone with a disability (Adam et. al, 2014, p. 494). Adam et. al (2014, p. 494) named a big reason for the victimization of a disabled person is due at least partly to views of their race. People are marginalized because they are at a disadvantage to someone whether that be the deaf in public places or the physically disabled in a group home. Next, there is a pattern of having high numbers of disabled population amongst the poor. 72% of those disabled are unemployed, that’s three times the percentage of those without an impairment (Adam et. al, 2014, p. 495). Those who go to court and fight for their discrimination in employment, housing, transportation, etc. more times than not have their court case lost in the process due to the unimportance of the matter (Adam et. al, 2014, p. 494).  

 

When working with clients with varying disabilities we are able to connect them with resources, help with therapy, and work throughs secondary problems due to the disability. By pointing out other identifying characteristics about the person it allows for less focus to be on the disability and more to be on the person and their great qualities. In the case of Valerie, she had a physical and mental disability (Plummer et.al, 2014). She was on disability because of her leg and also had depression and anxiety surrounding her. The social worker was able to point out other things going wrong in her life like her ex-husband abusing her and using substances and make them positive. She was able to use CBT to help her anxiety go down and the use of social groups to make her depression go down. By showing her the great qualities in her life she was able to focus on improving her life elsewhere to where she now feels empowered and a little more independent. 

 

Resources

-Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen S. M. (Eds.). (2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore, MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].

-Adams,  M., Blumenfeld, W. J., Castaneda, C., Catalano, D. C. J., DeJong, K., Hackman, H. W,... Zuniga,  X. (Eds.). (2018). Readings for diversity and social justice (4th ed.).

NS’s Post

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In many occasions when we are asked to identify diversity groups in our societies, the answers we give often tries to specify this diversity based on race, ethnic affiliation, skin color or perhaps sexual orientation.  Its usually rare to find people who identifies the people with disabilities as part of the diverse group in society.  Clearly, this by itself speaks on the marginalization and oppression that has historically happened to this group.  People with disability for so long have always been ignored or even abused and mistreated.  A perfect scenario is on the fact that the passing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was done so recently (1990).  This means that it took so long for the public and government to be able to properly formulate laws and policies addressing the needs of this population.  Furthermore, up to 72% of people with disabilities remain unemployed with their income being half the national average (Barnett, 2017).

Despite the efforts put in place to see that people with disabilities are treated as part of society, ableism still remains to be part of our society's fabric.  People still continue to link disability with uselessness.  It is clear that many people will deny this but deep down, people with disabiltiy are still treated differently.  Today, the society encourages people to procreate or to decide whether someone should be born or not basing on the contribution that this person will bring to society.  Otherwise, if this person will only drain the already existing resources then such a person is not beneficial to society.  This abuse and mistreatment call us to answer the moral question of what is life worth living (Lalvani, 2015).

Condsidering Valerie's situation, we see people with disabilities being taken advantage of.  Most often these people are discriminated and when they get consolation, they get it from people who at times tend to take advantage of them going to cases of sexual or verbal abuse.  It is the role of social workers to provide support and help to the people living with varying abilities to cope with the challenges in their daily lives.  Social workers ensure that their clients have safe and stable housing as well as to some extent, help them obtain a job.  They also ensure that disabled people are connected with the right groups as one way of ensure that these people live in a manner that they are able to manage their disability and thus live independently as possible (as seen in Valarie's case).  Social workers also works close with physicians and other healthcare specialists enabling them to give emotional and mental support to their clients (Peterman, 2018).

 

Barnett, J. P. (2017). Intersectional harassment and deviant embodiment among Autistic adults: (dis)ability, gender and sexuality. Culture, Health & Sexuality, 19(11), 1210–1224.

Lalvani, P. (2015). Disability, Stigma and Otherness: Perspectives of Parents and Teachers. International Journal of Disability, Development & Education,62(4), 379–393.

Peterman, D. E. (2018). Socioeconomic Status Discrimination. Virginia Law Review, 104(7), 1283–1359.

SOCW 6051 WK9 Discussion 2 – Responses neededTop of Form

Respond  by supporting or refuting your colleagues' analysis of disability as a social construct or your colleagues' analysis of the intersectionalities in the Parker case and how they marginalize and impact Stephanie. Follow APA for citing and referencing. Must contain references and citations. The references in the original post can be used for citations and references

AI’s Post

The social construct of disability is the idea that society and institutions have the authority to construct what disability is based on the expectations of health. As a society, our construct of disability and our acceptance of it is changing. There are many implications of the social construct of disability. One of the implications is exclusion (Lott, 2017). When people are different than the norm people ten dot push them off like they are weird and not to be part of the whole community. For example, the deaf population can often get excluded because they do not have similar forms of communicating with those who hear, and society has made an environment that is not accessible to them. Not having an accessible environment can also is part of the social construct. In buildings everywhere, there are people that need ramps, elevators, and wide doors to access education, resources, and services and those buildings sometimes don’t allow it. One more implication is the emotions that disabled people feel in their surroundings. Sometimes when having a mental illness people dismiss them as “less” or different and can make them feel anxious about relationships and depressed about not having the same opportunities as others because of the label and social construct around it. 

In Parker case, parts of her mental disability made her feel less than good enough. Her mental illness with bipolar, anxiety and depression set her apart from her family because they thought that none of it was necessary. They did not believe her and wanted to dismiss her attempted suicide.  She was put on a lot of different medications that altered the way she thinks, a long list of them. That might change the ways professionals have to try to treat her. There is no other help besides resource groups that she goes to that is being effective. If she wanted to try different alternatives to medicines with a professional that might help her. THough the intersection between Stephanie’s mental illnesses and other parts of her identity shows that there are more parts to her. She has qualities that make her like the rest of society. She is still able to work, communicate with people, have relationships, and have feelings just like everyone else except she needs an agent that helps her with that. Those are the strengths that a social worker could bring out to help her see that she is not her mental illnesses and she is part of society. 

 

Resources 

Lott, B. (2017, February 1). Social Construct of Disability. In Disability Solutions. Retrieved from https://www.disabilitytalent.org/single-post/2018/07/19/Social-Constructs-of-Disability

Laureate Education (Producer). (2013). Parker Family (Episode 30) [Video file]. In Sessions. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

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AG’s Post:

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Post an analysis of the implications of the social construction of disability.  Disability is a social construction due to what society views as a disability. There are physical and mental impairments but only visible impairments are recognized by able- body individual’s.  Social Security says a disability is an inability to continue working a job due to a debilitating condition (Kierman& Stark, 1986). Americans with Disabilities (ADA) defines it as being limited in fulfilling activities due to an individual’s impairment.  Describe how disability can be defined as a social construct. Explain how that relates to the perception of disability.  Disability is a social construct when society believes a person is unable to function as a “normal “person, without the help or assistance of others. Able- body people will show pity, sorrow, or sympathy towards this group based on their perceptions of disabled people.  Be specific and draw on examples from the Parker case to illustrate your thoughts.  Stephanie has bipolar disease and is able to care for her Mother but is dealing with mental illness. When you look at Stephanie a person would never suspect she has attempted suicide and has been in and out of the hospital for her disease.  A reasonable person would assume Stephanie should start acting like an adult and handle her own problems. Stephanie is labeled and marginalized. Stephanie not only has an internal disability (bipolar disorder) she also has environmental factors that makes her disorder more debilitating (Mother’s home).  Also, describe the intersection of Stephanie's mental illness with other characteristics of her identity.  The intersection for Stephanie is, she cannot begin to live a “normal” life until she changes the stressors in her environment. Once her environment is manageable she can begin to work on her bipolar disease.  Explain how those intersections could serve to further marginalize Stephanie's place and experiences in society.  As able-body people, and professionals we cannot assume we will have answers or know fully how to help or treat Stephanie without first listening to how she feels, and by putting ourselves in her shoes and accepting her reality. Professionals can marginalize Stephanie by formulating opinions without knowing all of the facts.  Finally, explain how such marginalization impacts her ability to make choices, use self-determination, and be an active agent with equitable status in her interactions with other professionals.  Stephanie lives in a house she grew- up in. She may still feel like the little girl around her Mom. She is unable to have self- determination because she is not being listened to.  Stephanie’s demeanor and her belief that everyone has gone through what she is going through is not a realistic view further confirmation to professionals Stephanie has mental disabilities. “It hurts to be told to blend seamlessly into the World, but that we are shunned because of how we work inside” (Adams, 2018, p. 513).  Reference  Adams, M., Blumenfeld, W. J., Castaneda, C., Catalano, D. C. J., DeJong, K., Hackman, H. W, Zuniga, X. (Eds.). (2018). Readings for diversity and social justice (4th ed.). New York, NY: Routledge Press.  Laureate Education (Producer). (2013). Parker Family (Episode 30) [Video file]. In Sessions. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu  Gilson, S. F., & DePoy, E. (2002). Theoretical approaches to disability content in social work education. Journal of Social Work Education, 38(1), 153–165.

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