People with disabilities have different preferences for language surrounding disability:
Read more in Think Inclusive's "Why Person-First Language Doesn't Always Put the Person First"
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| medical model | social model | cultural model | |
|---|---|---|---|
| view of disability | a deficiency or abnormality | a difference | valuable human diversity |
| cause of | a disability rooted in physical or psychological deficiency | ableism, lack of accessibility | ableism, lack of accessibility, attitudinal barriers |
| locus of problem | the individual | social institutions and processes | social institutions and processes; ableist ideology |
| change agent | medical or technological expert | individuals with disabilities, disability advocates, social movements, institutional leadership | disability culture, social movements, society |
| target of change effort | individuals with disabilities and other's efforts to accommodate | institutional processes and protocols; social practices; societal norms and values | institutions changing prevailing understandings of disability as a problem |
| goal of change effort | to diagnose, diminish, correct, and/or accommodate perceived deficits | to increase accessibility in all aspects of society and remove barriers that restrict life choices for disabled people | to reframe disability as a valuable way of being in the world |
from: Thurber, A., & Bandy, J. (2018). Creating Accessible Learning Environments. Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching. Retrieved [todaysdate] from http://cft.vanderbilt.edu/guides-sub-pages/creating-accessible-learning-environments/.
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