Politicizing self-advocacy
Disabled students navigating ableist expectations in postsecondary education
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21617840 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Emunah Woolf (McMaster University), Lee De Bie (0000-0002-9364-9487, McMaster University) |
| Year | 2022 |
| Volume | 42 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Publication date | 2022-08-18 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Disability Studies Quarterly (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1041-5718 • E-ISSN: 2159-8371 |
| Publisher | The Ohio State University Libraries (PUBLISHER • US) |
| DOI | 10.18061/dsq.v42i1.8062 |
| OpenAlex | W4293067964 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
The student self-advocacy literature commonly claims that although self-advocacy is a vital skill that disabled students require to succeed in postsecondary education, many of these students experience a significant ‘skills-deficit’ in this area. This paper seeks to intervene in this literature by proposing opportunities to ‘politicize’ self-advocacy and move away from its individual, deficit-focused approach. To do so, the paper reports findings from a qualitative study at a research-intensive Canadian university. Interviews with 11 disabled students revealed a perception that there is an institutionally endorsed ‘right way’ to self-advocate that included expectations to: (1) register for formal accommodations; (2) embody visible/physical disability; (3) perform less disabled; and (4) make others comfortable. Rooted in ableism, these harmful expectations adopt misconceptions of disability as predictable and visible, and burden students with demands that they make their self-advocacy convenient for those to whom they are self-advocating. As a form of resistance to these ableist expectations, students described their own ‘better way’ of negotiating self-advocacy and disability on campus. This ‘better way’ offers opportunities for ‘politicizing’ self-advocacy by recognizing ableism and the harms of the self-advocacy model, affirming disabled student knowledge and community, and enacting their visions for institutional change. Vital to this politicization is a move away from staff and nondisabled-led initiatives like self-advocacy training to address a perceived skills-deficit in individual students. Politicizing self-advocacy moves instead towards disabled students as full partners in conducting research and informing student services and staff training based on their collective lived expertise and strategic practices
Ableism · Disability studies · Negotiation · Pedagogy · Perception · Political science · Public relations · Self-advocacy · Sociology · Vision · Disability Education and Employment · Disability Rights and Representation · Gender Studies · Inclusion and Disability in Education and Sport · Law · Psychology
| Citations per year | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2024 - 2025 (2) |
| Highly cited | No |