Rethinking Disability: Insights From Anita Ghai – A Disability Theorist

Anita Ghai’s contributions to understanding disability

Discuss about the Reflection On The Disability Theorist.

Disability theorist Anita Ghai works as an associate professor in the department of psychology in New Delhi.  She contributed me a great way to the present reality of the physical disability. Her focus is developing a great understanding of the feminism and disability.  According to me, she developed a great understanding related to the individual’s struggle with disability and the story of surviving the lives with a disability. Being a disability theorist many efforts were done by her to understand the disability issues and how such issues are to be resolved.  

I believe that many of the evidence in relation to the social, historic and as per the analytical terms results to understand disability and the relation of such disability to different sectors (Singh & Ghai, 2009). As a theorist, she developed a great variety of proportions that are in relevance to disability that includes the religious texts, life trajectory, practices related to spiritual values and social attitudes (McConkey & Collins, 2010). Through her work, she explored the unofficial and official identifications and with this marginalisation of the lives that are disabled, which will help in raising the lives of the individuals suffering from a disability (Singh & Ghai, 2009).  The denial of the disability reality results to create such situation where the aged along with the disabled, women, men and children lacks the access of the basic rights of the human, are discriminated, marginalised and excluded against.

From the intellectual point of view, there are various precise circumstances that influenced the individual’s conditions suffering from disabilities and to mention the attitude of the normal individuals towards them. It was observed that neglecting, ignorance, fear and superstition are certain social factors that exacerbated isolation of the individuals with disabilities. Individuals with the disability face many issues and problems as they are believed to be a burden to the families and the societies (Fremlin, 2016).  The disability among the individuals is gendered and hence the feminism results in developing the awareness of the women exploitation and oppression in the society and also among the family.  The society and the cultural values in a great way are responsible for imposing a disability on the individuals suffering from impairments. The individuals with disability according to the theorist have the right to live the life as per the normal individuals (Fremlin, 2016).

Intersectionality of disability and feminism

According to me the theorist Ghai she underscores the disability in postcolonial practice and theory and looks at the culture and literature from two different perspectives. Such writings of her reflected the colonial past and found a new way to understand the world facing the issues related to the disability (Fremlin, 2016). Such domain writings and postcolonial theory of her develops a great understating towards the oppressed representation and identities of disability. As disability theorist, she believes to understand the others suffering from disability symbolically and historically (McConkey & Collins, 2010).

Disability to the great extent is constructed socially and its conceptualisation reflects the societal attitudes which viewed the disable individuals lives as worthless, tragic and burden (Fremlin, 2016). Through the theories the social model of disability and its significant and important to the disabled community and an extensive variety of social issues with this also interrogating and questioning the utility (Fremlin, 2016). The social model where the rights of the individual suffering from a disability are to be widely developed ad acknowledged ad highlights the economic, cultural and environmental barriers experienced by the individuals suffering from the disability (Fremlin, 2016).

I wonder that the rethink disability theory of the Ghai will lead to the various analyses ad recommendations of the various policies (Dattilo, 2013). In areas of the inclusive education, certain perspectives ad critiques are offered which supports I the understanding of the disability. But was not clear how to apply such policies in a complex environment where accepting the individuals with disabilities is a challenge (Dattilo, 2013).  Such a concept of rethinking brought certain different experiences ad concerns of the disabled individuals emphasise mainly the disability multiplicity and also its significance to the broader concerns. 

The commitment to femininity and women engagements bring questions to the ones observations on disability, newfangled dimensions for formation and actions on gender concern, and a considerate reflection on significant inclusion through distinctive politics (Ferguson, Jarrett & Terras, 2010). The theory of rethinking disability is full of analysis and insights on how various sources and areas of knowledge are to be linked (Dattilo, 2013). Her contribution of the disabled individuals are considered as a great foundation for the future work in different areas; the rapid changes in the society and globalisation develops option of the disabled inclusion in the society with the new understanding regarding disability and also through new opportunities and risks for the disabled individuals (Dattilo, 2013).

Factors perpetuating disability exclusion and marginalization

Disability rights academics and activists highlighted environmental and cultural factors that marginalise individuals with disabilities, disagree with their basic values and accompanying essential conditions or rights (McConkey & Collins, 2010). Such disability, social model approaches suggest that the disability root lies in the environment failure for allowing someone to work as per the capacity with the functional disability which exists among the individual (Dattilo, 2013). The highlighting of the marginalisation related to individuals having the disabilities through the environmental and cultural factors do not mean that the impairment is to be is shorn off. Mutilation is an intent concept and way that portion of an individual’s body that does not function or there some difficulty in the functioning (Dattilo, 2013).

With the understanding of the disability social construction, it is vital to engage with the eradicating barriers and to envelop the method for inclusive practice to reduce the disadvantage. Inclusive practices are required to be entrenched in institutions’ schedule practices moderately than as additional or compensatory (McConkey & Collins, 2010). Inclusive practice commence with the construction of alertness and a non-intimidating atmosphere. The challenges which are also faced by institutions are the non disclosure of the identity (Anderton, Eichmann, Ghai & Wilde, 2007).  The fear of discrimination is one of the major factors which are behind the non disclosure, because of the deficiency in of recognition of entitlements that is owed by the disabled individuals  (Ghai, 2006). Hence it is precise that in such areas the institution has to work to establish the culture of belongings. It is required to remember that the inclusion is to be broader than disability and the obstruction is not always related to impairment.

The barriers such as attitudinal are fairly replicated through identity and language fixation. Expressions like ‘tragedy’, ‘special needs’ ‘charity’ etc tends to comprise negative implication (Echeverri & Fernández, 2014).  The term ‘disabled individual favours individual with a disability’ as this is a sign of disability as peripheral as contrasting to somewhat that is inherent to the people identity. Practitioners over and over again enclose to give an explanation and justify terminology of the social model (Echeverri & Fernández, 2014). 

Sensitivity is compulsory to the argument that ‘bothering’ attitudes and language can impetuous social exclusion (Ghai, 2006). The present disability models, such as post-social, affirmative models and social models, distinguish between ‘disability and ‘impairment’, with this also argues that  impairment is not the same as disability; it, in its place, happen to a disability as an outcome of disabling environmental factors such as the absence of the hearing loops (Ghai, 2006).

Rethinking disability for more inclusive practices

It is believed by few social modelists’ that the impairment class is unrelated to the combined domination of disabled individuals. Post-social modelists assert understanding to person experience that is harmonizing among the approach of disability practitioners (Traustadóttir & Rice, 2012). The social representation is not essentially exportable to the indigent popular world situation. This is pertinent to worldwide students and UK university provisions around the globe. The assenting model emphasise facileness and discards disability as tragedy (Singh & Ghai, 2009). 

Structural barriers that individuals with disability faces are such as the stairs, are the apparent but attitudinal obstacle, for example, any individual if suffering from dyslexia then nursing is not to be an appropriate career for such individual (Cranmer, 2017). Such assumptions of the people surrounding the individuals with the disability such as the family members, teachers, and advisors can limit the opportunities (Carling-Jenkins, 2014). As a practitioner, I also question whether such profound disability rethinking might lead to diverse policy recommendations and analysis. In several areas, mainly in the inclusive education, theorist Anita Ghai offer cautious perspectives and analysis on existing policy. But in certain other areas, the analysis hasn’t seemed to be taken to the conclusion (Cranmer, 2017).  An example of this is that in terms of certain significant issues on accepting disability: the episode that deals with them end with morals from the United Nations’ Convention.

Conclusion:

Due to the social structure of disability, population incident with the disabilities resulted reduce expectations by populace having no disabilities and also the restricted addition in society (Carling-Jenkins, 2014).  The fresh interpretations of disability and impairment can be educated through the experiences of the disabilities; with the facilitation of the correct participation in the major activities and also through the defence and recognition of the general principles of self-determination or autonomy, equality,  social justice, diversity and dignity that are embedded in individuals and  the rights that flow among them (Carling-Jenkins, 2014).

References

Anderton, E., Eichmann, H., Ghai, A., & Wilde, A. (2007). BOOK REVIEWS. Disability & Society, 22(4), 427-435.

Buitrago Echeverri, M., & Tamayo Fernández, M. (2014). Discapacidad e inclusión (Disability and inclusion). Inclusión & Desarrollo, 2(1), 14.

Carling-Jenkins, R. (2014). Inclusion: battling for disability. Disability & Society, 30(1), 158-159.

Cranmer, S. (2017). Disability, discourse and technology. Agency and inclusion in (inter)action. Disability & Society, 33(2), 313-314.

Dattilo, J. (2013). Inclusive Leisure and Individuals With Intellectual Disability. Inclusion, 1(1), 76-88.

Ferguson, M., Jarrett, D., & Terras, M. (2010). Inclusion and healthcare choices: the experiences of adults with learning disabilities. British Journal Of Learning Disabilities, 2(3), 55-75.

Fremlin, P. (2016). Rethinking disability in India. Disability & Society, 31(10), 1411-1413.

Ghai, A. (2006). Education in a globalising era: Implications for disabled girls. Social Change, 36(3), 161-176.

McConkey, R., & Collins, S. (2010). The role of support staff in promoting the social inclusion of persons with an intellectual disability. Journal Of Intellectual Disability Research, 54(8), 691-700.

Simpson, M. (2016). Learning disability and inclusion phobia: past, present and future. Disability & Society, 31(7), 990-992.

Singh, V., & Ghai, A. (2009). Notions of self: lived realities of children with disabilities. Disability & Society, 24(2), 129-145.

Traustadóttir, R., & Rice, J. (2012). Vulnerability at the intersection of poverty and disability. Vulnerable Groups & Inclusion, 3(1), 9172.