Introducing Disability Studies

by Ronald J. Berger, Loren E Wilbers (Contributor)

Praise for the first

"A well-written, accessible, and well-rounded introduction to disability studies for all levels of education. Readers will find excellent sociological grounding of the historical, cultural, and legal factors that inform our understanding of disability and ableism." ―-Christina Papadimitriou, Sociology of Disabilities

"A welcome, accessible introduction to the growing field of disability studies." ―Michelle Jarman, Disability Studies Quarterly

"Offer[s] a much-needed perspective to balance negative socially constructed opinions regarding disability."―Jane Crawford, International Journal of Disability, Development, and Education
The new edition of this acclaimed text is an up-to-date introduction to the key themes, research, and controversies in disability studies.

The authors' innovative approach offers thorough coverage
• diverse theoretical perspectives
• historical context, from ancient times to the present
• the impact of disability throughout the life course
• a range of physical, sensory, and cognitive impairments
• the place of disability in popular culture
• ethical issues, such as genetic selection and physician-assisted suicide

While giving prominence to the voices of individuals, they provide a solid foundation for making sense of disability not only as a personal experience, but also as a social phenomenon.

Genres: Disability, Disability Studies, Nonfiction

299 pages, Paperback

First published December 28, 2012

About the author

Professor of Sociology and Chair of the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

Reviews

[Alison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looking forward to teaching this text..

[Alexandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Invaluable introductory resource. Put a lot of things into perspective and furnished me with a crucial vocabulary with which to contextualize my life and many of my experiences.

Straightforward and informative.

[Kerrie Popa · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Introducing Disability Studies” by Ronald Berger and Loren Wilbers was a fascinating read. Despite the style being rather academic in tone, I read it as a leisurely book and came away from the experience feeling quite pleased and informed. The subject is one that my university courses often don’t bother covering, so this was very intriguing reading for me.

I attended university and earned a Bachelor of Science in Sociology, accompanied by double minors in both Gender & Sexuality Studies and Social Service. As a social justice warrior with disabilities, I quickly found interest in the field of Disability Studies. Because not many higher education institutions offer the subject in degree-seeking manners, I pushed it to the back of my mind and hoped that disability would be addressed in my sociology program.

Sadly, disability was not covered satisfactorily in the content and curriculums often provided little instruction on such matters. I was initially surprised by this lack of disability representation in a field dedicated to social justice. As time has gone on, I learned that the social exclusion of the disability community has become so normalized that exclusion no longer has to be intentional in order to be present.

This social exclusion of the disability community is a practical rooted in ableism that has always been allowed to exist and proliferate. Because it’s a minority group, many people never experience what it’s like for a person with disabilities to navigate a fundamentally ableist society. A minority are disabled, even though likely nearly all of us are temporarily abled, which is why ableist forms of prejudice and discrimination are allowed to exist on the periphery.

But I digress…due to my educational background being in a different field, I needed an introduction to this field. Although I had done my own research, steering the curriculum somewhat by selected topics surrounding disability, I had little formal knowledge of the field of Disability Studies. This book succeeding in introducing me to some of that basic knowledge that I’d been lacking.

“Introducing Disability Studies” begins with understanding the presence of disability In everyday language before briefly delineating the subject matter and covering the disability rights movement in Chapter 1. It then goes on to discuss the medical model, disability as a cultural identity, disability in social interaction, political economy, and feminism, and the role of queer theory, crip theory, and critical disability studies in Chapter 2. Chapter 3 describes disability in antiquity, progress, the Rehabilitation Movement, President FDR, deinstitutionalization, the ADA, and the post-ADA world.

Chapter 4 discusses parental introductions to disability in family life, followed by an analysis of diagnosis and deviation, offering the child’s perspective, describing the impacts on families, and special education programs. Chapter 5 provides commentary on disability in adolescence, in adults, in the workforce, disability and sexual/emotional intimacy, personal assistants and attendants, and disabled elders. Chapter 6 explores bodily experiences of disability, including those with hearing and/or vision disabilities, those with autism, schizophrenia, and traumatic brain injury (TBI), spinal cord injuries, and athletes in disability sports.

The final two chapters discuss disability in popular culture (Chapter 7: describes Grimms’ Fairy Tales and disability, classic literature and characters, contemporary literature and characters, the horror genre, dramas featuring recovery, disability comedy, and in TV dramas and comedies) and disability in the future (Chapter 8: computer technology, genetic selection, physician-assisted suicide, revisiting the medical model, and disability as human rights.

Highly recommended reading!

[Dorothea · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lot to be said for the lucidity of this reading, which takes one through a very solid overview of the main topics of disability studies and satisfies the expectations set up by the title well. I suppose, however, that I would have liked to see more of the theories/arguments explicated than to see the wide variety of (sometimes) repeated examples. However, the bibliography is complete and making use of this helps balance out that deficiency.

[Olwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Academic text for rehabilitation counselling studies.

[Stacy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great overview of disability-related topics, with a treasure trove of a bibliography for further research.

[Mills College Library]

305.908 B4966 2013