Defining a theoretical agenda for disability studies
Carol Thomas (Plenary Speaker), Institute for Health Research, Lancaster University
Abstract
My conference address outlines some thoughts on the future direction that disability studies might usefully take. It is concerned with the development of our discipline's theoretical agenda - an agenda that must be of service to the disabled people's movement. This is not, of course, to deny the importance of other agendas - for example, those related to policy research and practice.
Before outlining the top four themes in my suggested theoretical agenda for disability studies, I spend some time examining contemporary understandings of our core concept: disability. I argue that the meaning of this central concept is still unclear and variable: we do not yet agree on what it consists of. I suggest that there are two meanings of disability in circulation:
- Disability is restricted activity (caused by social barriers).
- Disability is a form of social oppression.
I argue in favour of the second meaning - which represents a social relational understanding of disability. The reasons why it is important to get agreement on what disability is are considered.
The paper moves on to discuss four priority themes in my theoretical agenda for disability studies:
- to develop a contemporary political economy of disability;
- to understand the psycho-emotional dimensions of disability;
- to theorise difference;
- to theorise impairment and impairment effects.
The paper concludes by suggesting that disability studies is at a point, certainly in the UK, where it would benefit from a re-energised engagement with the formulation of its theoretical trajectory.