Links

---------------------------

WVDDC

NADDC

American's with Disabilities Act

Centers for Disease Control

Administration for Children and Families

Developmental Disabilities Resource Center

Disability Rights Law

The American Association for People with Disabilities

Defining Disability

Following are some selected examples of definitions of disability and developmental disability. Definitions are developed in many ways. For example, some definitions flow from statutory regulations and some definitions arise from advocacy groups. It may be helpful to charge students individually to define disability, and then as a group reach consensus. This activity may impart to students the diverse views we have when defining disability and the resultant difficulty.

General Definitions of Disability

Oregon Office on Disability and Health
(http://cdrc.ohsu.edu/oodh)

Disability is a fluid concept that involves the complex interaction between a person’s abilities and the physical and social environment. Secondary conditions are defined as aspects of living that negatively impact a person’s ability to achieve optimal health and wellness that emerge from underlying impairment or health conditions.

The Center for an Accessible Society
(www.accessiblesociety.org/topics/demographics-identity/nidrr-lrp-defs.htm)

“It is useful to regard an individual with a disability as a person who requires an accommodation or intervention rather than as a person with a condition or impairment. Because accommodations can address person-centered factors as well as socio-environmental factors….a ‘need for accommodation’ is a more adaptable concept.

International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF)
(http://www3.who.int/icf/begines/bg.pdf)

“Previously, disability began where health ended. Once you were disabled, you were in a separate category. We want to get away from this kind of thinking.” The ICF is moving towards a biopsychosocial model which recognizes “the interaction between health conditions and contextual factors.” Contextual factors include the environment (i.e attitudes, legal structures, etc.) and personal factors (i.e. gender, age, coping mechanisms, education, how one experiences the disability, etc.).
The ICF identifies 3 levels of human functioning: functioning at the level of body or body part; the whole person; and the whole person in a social context. Disability involves dysfunctioning at one or more of these levels recognizing levels of functioning as impairment, activity limitation, and participation restrictions.

American with Disabilities Act of 1990
(www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/adahom1.htm)

A physical or mental impairment that substantially limits 1 or more of the major life activities of the individual; a record of such an impairment; or being regarded as having such an impairment. The term “qualified individual with a disability” means an individual with a disability who, with or without reasonable modifications to rules, policies or practices, the removal of architectural, communication or transportation barriers, or the provision of auxiliary aids and services, meets the essential eligibility requirements for the receipt of services or participation in programs or activities which are provided by a public entity.

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
(www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/Policy/IDEA/index.html)

In general, the term “child with a disability” means a child:

with mental retardation, hearing impairments, language impairments, serious emotional disturbance, orthopedic impairments, autism, traumatic brain injury, other health impairments, or specific learning disabilities AND who, by reason thereof, needs special education and related services.

Rehabilitation Act of 1973
(www.dol.gob/oasam/regs/statutes/sec504.htm)

A physical or mental impairment that constitutes or results in substantial impediment to employment.

Assistive Technology Act of 1998
(www.section508.gov/docs/AT1997.html)

Any individual of any age, race, or ethnicity who has a disability; AND who is or would be enabled by an assistive technology device or assitive technology service to minimize deterioration in functioning, or to achieve a greater level of functioning in any major area of life.

2000 Census
(www.census.gov as reported in WVDD Council Publication: A Reporter’s Guide: Reporting About People with Disabilities written by Betsy Southall, edited by Steve Wiseman and Jan Lilly-Stewart)

A long lasting physical, mental or emotional condition that inhibits a person’s ability to perform ordinary functions such as walking, bathing, learning, and remembering.