Disability Studies begins with an assumption that disability is created by society and constitutes a form of social oppression which results in the exclusion of people who have impairments. The approach is often referred to as the "Social Model of Disability". It, essentially, rejects a medical model of impairment, which understands disability as residing within the individual as a "limitation" or fault to be cured or contained by professionals or institutions. The basic question posed in a medical model approach is "what is wrong with you and how will this prevent you from being included in society?"
The Social Model locates disability within society and shifts the responsibility for inclusion to society as a whole. The question posed becomes "What do we need to do to ensure you can be included in your chosen activity?" Inclusion and the removal of barriers to participation in society is therefore the responsibility of society rather than being vested in the personal attributes of a particular individual. In Québec we adhere to a modified World Health Organization model of the construction of disability by society. This is termed the "Processus de Production du Handicap" (PPH) model. Disability is understood through the analysis of barriers and facilitators which confront a person who has an impairment.
Video by Margaret Colton, OSD Intern
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Office for Students with Disabilities, McGill University
Redpath Library Building, Suite RS56
3459 McTavish Street
Montreal, Quebec
H3A 0C9
20 сен 2024
