Improving human characteristics goes beyond compensating for an impairment. This book explores the rich and complex relationship between enhancement and impairment, showing that the study of disability offers new ways of thinking about the social and ethical implications of improving the human condition.

Founded in 1893, the National League of the Blind was the first nationwide self-represented group of visually impaired people in Britain. This book explores its campaign to make the state solely responsible for providing training, employment and assistance for the visually impaired as a right, and its fight to abolish all charitable aid for them.

In today's rapidly changing technological world, it is increasingly important that web and desktop applications be accessible to everyone, including those of us with special needs. However, the legal requirements for accessibility are often convoluted and diffucult to understand, making it impossible for most developers to comply with the laws. In the first book on the market to address the topic, Author John Paul Mueller leads you through the maze of Section 508the congressional law ensuring that all Americans have access to information technologyand offers comprehensive guidance on how to quickly and easily update your applications to conform to Section 508 requirements.

To begin, Mueller outlines the Section 508 requirements that are relevant to web and desktop application developers, and explains the laws in language you can understand. Using extensive and varied program examples, Mueller continues on to teach you to write web and desktop applications that not only conform to Section 508 standards, but look forward to ensure long-term universal accessibility for all types of computer users. Specific topics include writing accessible web applications and desktop applications using Visual Basic .NET and Visual C# .NET, developing special application capabilities, using Microsoft and other third-party tools to develop accessible features, developing accessible scripting solutions, and more. The book even includes a directory of helpful organizations, agencies, and resources to help you with any further accessibility concerns you may have.

A Deafblind writer and professor explores how the misrepresentation of disability in books, movies, and TV harms both the disabled community and everyone else. As a Deafblind woman with partial vision in one eye and bilateral hearing aids, Elsa Sjunneson lives at the crossroads of blindness and sight, hearing and deafness-much to the confusion of the world around her. While she cannot see well enough to operate without a guide dog or cane, she can see enough to know when someone is reacting to the visible signs of her blindness and can hear when they're whispering behind her back. And she certainly knows how wrong our one-size-fits-all definitions of disability can be. As a media studies professor, she's also seen the full range of blind and deaf portrayals on film, and here she deconstructs their impact, following common tropes through horror, romance, and everything in between. Part memoir, part cultural criticism, part history of the Deafblind experience, Being Seen explores how our cultural concept of disability is more myth than fact, and the damage it does to us all.

Covering a diverse range of figures and issues from Jonathan Swifts pornographic poetry to Oscar Wildes famous cello-shaped coat this book collapses Irish studies into the critical perspective of disability studies: linking 'Irishness' and 'disability' together allows the emergence of a new critical perspective, an Irish disability studies.

Comedy and humour have frequently played a key role in disabled people's lives, for better or for worse. Comedy has also played a crucial part in constructing cultural representations of disability and impairments, contributing to the formation and maintenance of cultural attitudes towards disabled people, and potentially shaping disabled people's images of themselves. As a complex and often polysemic form of communication, there is a need for greater understanding of the way we make meanings from comedy. This is the first book which explores the specific role of comedic film genres in representations of disability and impairment. Wilde argues that there is a need to explore different ways to synthesise Critical/Disability Studies with Film Studies approaches, and that a better understanding of genre conventions is necessary if we are to understand the conditions of possibility for new representational forms and challenges to ableism. After a discussion of the possibilities of a 'fusion' between Disability Studies and Film Studies, and a consideration of the relationships of comedy to disability, Wilde undertakes analysis of contemporary films from the romantic comedy, satire, and gross-out genres. Analysis is focused upon the place of disabled and non-disabled people in particular films, considering visual, audio, and narrative dimensions of representation and the ways they might shape the expectations of film audiences. This book is of particular value to those in Film and Media Studies, and Critical/Disability Studies, especially for those who are investigating more inclusive practices in cultural representation.

TItis volume is the first effort to compile representative work in the emerging research area on the relationship of disability and physical environment since Barrier-Free Environments, edited by Michael Bednar, was published in 1977. Since that time, disability rights legislation like the Americans, with Disabilities Act in the United States, the worldwide growth of the independent-living move ment, rapid deinstitutionalization, and the maturation of functional assessment methodology have all had their impact on this research area. The impact has been most noticeable in two ways-fostering the integration of environmental vari ables in rehabilitation research and practice, and changing paradigms for environ mental interventions. As the contributions in this volume demonstrate, the relationship of disabil ity and physical environment is no longer of interest primarily to designers and other professionals concerned with managing the resources of the built environ ment. The physical environment has always been recognized as an important variable affecting rehabilitation outcome. Until recently, however, concepts and tools were not available to measure its impact in clinical practic and outcomes research. In particular, lack of a theoretical foundation that integrated environ ment with the disablement process hampered development of both research and clinical methodology. Thus, the physical environment received little attention from the mainstream rehabilitation research community. However, this situation is changing rapidly."

The purpose of this book is to break a number of the conventions of research texts by writing an academic text on methodology as a case study of building case studies, one that cites classic works in the field and contains autobiographical considerations throughout its account, one that narrates the conscious process of designing a framework from the range of philosophies that were involved in chronicling this topic.

Equal accessibility to public places and services is now required by law in many countries. In the case of the vision-impaired, it is often the use of specialised technology which can provide them with a fuller enjoyment of all the facilities of society from large scale meetings and public entertainments to the more personal level of reading a book or making music. In this volume the engineering and design principles and techniques used in assistive technology for blind and vision-impaired people are explained.

Features:

a [ instruction in the physiology of the human visual system and methods of measuring visual ability;

a [ explanation of many devices designed for every-day living in terms of generic electrical engineering principles;

a [ sections of practical projects and investigations which will give the reader ideas for student work and for self teaching;

a [ contributions by authors of international repute from divers fields which co-operate under the banner of assistive technology, among them: artificial vision systems; psychology, haptics, electrical engineering, design and visual physiology.

Assistive Technology for Vision-impaired and Blind People is an an effective means of maintaining the currency of knowledge for engineers and health workers working to provide devices and/or services for people with sight loss and an excellent source of reference for students working in assistive technology and rehabilitation.

This is the first book-length study of Helen Keller's public speaking. It contains rhetorical analysis about how a person who was "sightless but seen, deaf but heard" learned to communicate, and how she gave public speeches for nearly 80 years inspiring others with her "vision for a better tomorrow." The analysis, texts of various speeches on a broad range of subjects, a chronology of her speeches, and bibliography will be helpful to students and teachers of speech and all those interested in Helen Keller.

This book proposes theoretical models and practical strategies for tackling the widespread social exclusion faced by people diagnosed mentally ill. Based primarily on research in the US and UK but with reference to other international examples, it analyses evidence of discrimination and the effectiveness of different remedies: disability discrimination law, work to re-frame media and cultural images, grassroots inclusion programmes, challenges to the 'nimby' factor. It places the growing user/survivor and disability movements as central to achieving any radical change.

One out of every seven working age African Americans has an impairment that affects functioning in activities of daily living. These statistics suggest that most African Americans are touched by disability. This book examines the psychosocial aspects of disability and chronic illness using a culturally congruent framework. Chapters address prevalance, health and rehabilitation utilization patterns, the role of culture, empirical research, and strategies for improving mental health and functional outcomes. This book will be useful to professionals who work with people with disabilities, policymakers, and consumers, as well as faculty and students in rehabilitation, health, and African American courses.

This first person account of a clinical psychologist's work is a guide to the use of cognitive techniques with seriously mentally ill clients. Although it is written in nontechnical language accessible to the beginning therapist, it includes enough detailed material about the unusual thinking of seriously ill clients to expand the repertoire of the experienced therapist as well. It covers a wide range of possible applications--from individual sessions to alleviate the desperation of hospitalized patients, to the development of group preventive workshops and psychoeducational tools using interactive media.

Disability and Music Performance examines discriminatory social practices in music conservatoria, orchestras, music festivals and music competitions, which limit disabled people's access to music performance at a professional level. Of particular interest are the disabling barriers that musicians with an intellectual, physical, sensory or neurological disability-or an acquired brain injury-encounter in the world of Western classical music, both as students and as professional performers. This book collects data in the form of semi-structured interviews and video and audio recordings to explore the voice, concerns and suggestions expressed by musicians with disabilities. It examines their perceptions of both inclusive and discriminatory practices in music institutions as well as the representation of, and audio-visual recordings by, key musical figures with disabilities. Its findings aim to contribute to the wellbeing of musicians with impairments by challenging disabling social practices that see them as inferior. This publication offers performers, teachers and researchers new perspectives for exploring some of the most common social dynamics in encounters between normative audiences, musicians and music critics, and musicians with disabilities. It invites the reader to recognise disability as a rightful identity category in music performance and to dismantle the disabling barriers that limit the participation of disabled people in music-making.

Everyone can learn new or more effective coping skills and strategies to deal with times of loss, crisis, and disability. Being aware of possible options or of how others fare in coping with difficult situations is better than groping in the dark. It is hoped that the real life experiences and coping skills presented here will help others in dealing with similar issues and challenges.

This innovative and adventurous work, now in paperback, uses broadly feminist and postmodernist modes of analysis to explore what motivates damaging attitudes and practices towards disability. The book argues for the significance of the psycho-social imaginary and suggests a way forward in disability's queering of normative paradigms.

This book describes the course of social and emotional development in children and adults with mental retardation. Based on empirical research exploring the effect of cognitive delays and socialization for incompetence on normal developmental milestones, the text is supplemented and enriched by the reflections of individuals with mental retardation. Castles begins with an overview of social and emotional development in intellectually normal persons and a discussion of how this process is affected by the experience of mental retardation. Subsequent chapters deal with changing relationships between persons with retardation and their families throughout their lifespans; friendships and social skills; self-esteem, coping skills, and stigmas; and major issues of adult life such as work, sexuality, marriage, and parenthood. This book will be useful to educators, mental health professionals, vocational counselors, and the families of persons with developmental disabilities. Chapters include specific recommendations for how professionals and family members might help to improve the social and emotional functioning of individuals with mental retardation. The final section of the book focuses on mental health concerns, describing the nature and causes of emotional disturbance in persons with mental retardation and outlining resources for intervention and treatment. This book will be invaluable to educators, mental health profesionals, vocational counselors, and the families of persons with developmental disabilities.

Inspired by the author's personal experience of sustaining acquired brain injury (ABI), this path-breaking book explores the (re)construction of identity after ABI. It offers a way of understanding ABI through a social scientific lens, promoting an understanding that is generated through close engagement with the lives and experiences of ABI survivors. The author follows the everyday experiences of six male survivors and critically investigates their identity (re)construction after their ABI. As well as demonstrating identity (re)construction after ABI, the experiences of the participants allow the reader to investigate neurological rehabilitation from their perspective. This book suggests that rehabilitation after ABI is often a continual process that extends beyond the formal, medically prescribed period. It also shows that identity after ABI is often (re)constructed in an unpredictable way; a way that emphasises the importance of reciprocal support and the uncertainty of future life. A Sociological Approach to Acquired Brain Injury and Identity is essential reading for academics and students from a range of social scientific disciplines with an interest in biographical or ethnographic research methods. This book offers a social scientific view of rehabilitation and as such is also essential reading for academics, students and professionals with an interest in health and illness, particularly neurological rehabilitation and brain injury rehabilitation.

One of the perennial political/philosophical questions concerns whether it is ever justifiable for a third party to paternalistically restrict an adult's freedom to ensure their own, or society's, best interests are protected. Wherever one stands on this debate it remains the case that, unlike their non-impaired contemporaries, many intellectually disabled adults are subjected to a paternalistic regime of care. This is particularly the case regarding members of this population exercising more control of their sexuality. Utilizing rare empirical data, Foucault's theory of power and Kristeva's concept of abjection, this work shows that many non-disabled people - including family members - hold ambivalent attitudes towards people with visible disabilities expressing their sexuality. Through a careful examination of the autonomy/paternalism debate this is the first book to provide an original, provocative and philosophically compelling analysis to argue that where necessary, facilitated sex with prostitutes should be included as part of a new regime of care to ensure that sexual needs are met. Intellectual Disability and the Right to a Sexual Life is essential reading for scholars, students and policy-makers with an interest in philosophy, sociology, political theory, social work, disability studies and sex studies. It will also be of interest to anybody who is a parent or a sibling of an adult with an intellectual disability and those with an interest in human rights and disability more generally.

Within the past two decades, dramatic advances in medical technology have led to a complete restructuring of medical care services for pregnant women and their newborns. Regionalization provides a full accountant of this new system known as regionalized perinatal care. Perinatologists, epidemiologists, public health administrators, and anyone involved with maternal-child care will find in this book, practical answers to their questions.