Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-r5fsc Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-27T01:09:52.305Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Needs, Challenges and Goals of Australian Women With Disabilities: A Preliminary Survey

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 June 2014

Stacey Copas  and
Diana Dorstyn
Stacey Copas
Affiliation:
Enable Development, Acton, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Diana Dorstyn*
Affiliation:
School of Psychology, University of Adelaide, Australia
*
Address for correspondence: D. Dorstyn, University of Adelaide, School of Psychology, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia5005. Email: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

An online survey of adult women living in Australia with an acquired or congenital disability was conducted to explore the needs and challenges experienced by this population. Data for 116 respondents with a primary mobility (n = 92), sensory-related (n = 12), psychiatric (n = 6), or neurocognitive impairment (n = 6) were collected. Word clouds and content analysis were utilised to examine the data. Barriers to achieving vocational, health and relationship goals were identified, including systemic (e.g. financial resources, accessibility issues, societal attitudes), physical (e.g. medical sequalae), and psychological (e.g. self-concept, assertiveness) issues. Strategies to overcome these barriers included increased availability of peer support networks and opportunities for personal development. It follows that disability services require a multi-faceted approach, with a focus on biopsychosocial factors that include, but are not limited to, mobility, self-care and communication needs.

Keywords

disabilityimpairmentbarriersgender issueswomen
Type
Articles
Information
The Australian Journal of Rehabilitation Counselling , Volume 20 , Issue 1 , July 2014 , pp. 28 - 37
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Australian Academic Press Pty Ltd 2014 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Australian Bureau of Statistics (2010). Australian Social Trends – March 2012. Disability and work series cat no. 4102.0. Canberra: Author. Retrieved from: http://www.abs.gov.au/socialtrendsGoogle Scholar
Australian Bureau of Statistics (2009). Household Use of Information Technology. Australia 2008–2009. Cat. no. 8146.0, Canberra. Retrieved from: http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/Google Scholar
Australian Institute of Health & Welfare (2009). Disability support services 2007–08. National data on services provided under the Commonwealth State/Territory Disability Agreement. Disability series cat. no. DIS 56. Canberra: Author. Retrieved from: http://www.aihw.gov.au/disability-publications/.Google Scholar
Bowling, A. (2005). Mode of questionnaire administration can have serious effects on data quality. Journal of Public Health, 27, 281–291. Doi: 10.1093/pubmed/fdi031Google Scholar
Busch, C., De Maret, P.S., Flynn, T., Kellum, R., Le, S., Meyers, B., Saunders, M., White, R., & Palmquist, M. (1994–2012). Content Analysis. Writing@CSU. Colorado State University. Retrieved from http://writing.colostate.edu/guides/.Google Scholar
Calasanti, T. (2010). Gender relations and applied research on aging. The Gerontologist. 50, 720–734. Doi:10.1093/geront/gnp085Google Scholar
Cidell, J. (2010). Content clouds as exploratory qualitative data analysis. Area, 42, 514–523. Doi: 10.1111/j.1475-4762.2010.00952.xCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Danaher, B.G., Boles, S.M., Akers, L., Gordon, J.S., & Severson, H.H. (2006). Defining participant exposure measures in web-based health behavior change programs. Journal of Medical Internet Research, 8 (3), e15. Doi: 10.2196/jmir.8.3.e15CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Drainoni, M., Houlihan, B., Williams, S., Vedrani, M., Esch, D., Lee-Hood, E. & Weiner, C. (2004, Nov). Patterns of internet use by persons with spinal cord injuries and relationship to health-related quality of life. Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 85 (11), 1872–1879. Doi: 10.1016/j.apmr.2004.07.350Google Scholar
Duckett, S.J. (2011). The Australian Public Health Care System (4th ed). Melbourne: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Egan, J., Chenoweth, L., & McAuliffe, D. (2012). Email-facilitated qualitative interviews with traumatic brain injury survivors: A new and accessible method. Brain Injury, 20 (12): 1283–1294. Doi: 10.1080/02699050601049692Google Scholar
Engel, G. (1977). The need for a new medical model: A challenge for biomedicine. Science, 196, 129–136. Doi: 10.1126/science.847460.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Garland-Thomson, R. (2005) Feminist Disability Studies. Signs, 30, 1557–1587.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hosseinpoor, A.R., Williams, J.S., Jann, B., Kowal, P., Officer, A., Posarac, A., & Chatterji, S. (2012). Social determinants of sex differences in disability among older adults: a multi-country decomposition analysis using the World Health Survey. International Journal of Equity Health, 11: 52. Doi: 10.1186/1475-9276-11-52Google Scholar
Kent, M. & Dorstyn, D. (2014). Psychological variables associated with employment following spinal cord injury: a meta-analysis. Manuscript submitted for publication.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kirshbaum, M., & Olkin, R. (2002). Parents with physical, systemic, or visual disabilities. Sexuality and Disability, 20 (1), 65–80. Doi: 10.1023/A:1015286421368Google Scholar
Lew-Starowicz, M., & Rola, R. (2013). Prevalence of sexual dysfunctions among women with multiple sclerosis. Sexuality and Disability, 31, 141–153. Doi: 10.1007/s11195-013-9293-9CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Miller, N.A., Kirk, A., Alston, B., & Glos, L (2013). Effects of gender, disability, and age in the receipt of preventive services. The Gerontologist. Advance online publication. Doi: 10.1093/geront/gnt012Google Scholar
Morse, J.M. (2012). Qualitative Health Research: Creating a new discipline. Walnut Creek, CA: Left Coast Press.Google Scholar
Niemeier, J.P. (2008). Unique aspects of women's emotional responses to disability. Disability and Rehabilitation, 30, 166–173. Doi: 10.1080/09638280701532169CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
O’Reilly, A. (2007). The Right to Decent Work of Persons with Disabilities. Geneva: International Labour Office (ILO).Google Scholar
Parish, S.L., & Huh, J. (2006). Health care for women with disabilities: Population-based evidence of disparities. Health & Social Work, 31, 7–15. Doi: 10.1093/hsw/31.1.7Google Scholar
Robinson-Whelen, S., Taylor, H.B., Hughes, R.B., Wenzel, L., & Nosek, M.A. (2014). Depression and depression treatment in women with spinal cord injury. Topics in Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation, 20 (1), 23–31. Doi: 10.1310/sci2001-23Google Scholar
Shakespeare, T., & Watson, N. (2001). The social model of disability: An outdated ideology? In: Exploring Theories and Expanding Methodologies: Where We Are and Where We Need to Go. Series: Research in social science and disability (2). JAI, Amsterdam and New York, pp. 9–28.Google Scholar
Stuifbergen, A.K., Phillips, L., Voelmeck, W., & Browder, R. (2006). Illness perceptions and related outcomes among women with fibromyalgia syndrome. Women's Health Issues, 16, 353–360. Doi: 10.1016/j.whi.2006.05.003Google Scholar
Suls, J., Krantz, D.S., & Williams, G.C. (2013). Three strategies for bridging different levels of analysis and embracing the biopsychosocial model. Health Psychology, 32 (5), 597–601. Doi: 10.1037/a0031197.Google Scholar
Taylor, R.R. (2005). Can the social model explain all of disability experience? Perspectives of persons with chronic fatigue syndrome. The American Journal of Occupational Therapy, 59, 497–506. Doi: 10.5014/ajot.59.5.497Google Scholar
Wade, D.T., & Halligan, T. (2004). Do biomedical models of illness make for good healthcare systems? British Medical Journal, 329, 1398–1401. Doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7479.1398CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Williamson, M.L., & Elliott, T.R. (2013). Major depressive disorder and factorial dimensions among individuals with recent-onset spinal cord injury. Rehabilitation Psychology, 58, 10–17. Doi: 10.1037/a0031265Google Scholar
Wood, B., van der Mei, I.A., Ponsonby, A.L., Pittas, F., Quinn, S., Dwyer, T., Lucas, R.M., & Taylor, B.V. (2013). Prevalence and concurrence of anxiety, depression and fatigue over time in multiple sclerosis. Multiple Sclerosis, 19, 217–224. Doi: 10.1177/1352458512450351.Google Scholar
World Health Organisation (2001). International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health. Geneva: Author. Retrieved from: http://www.who.int/Google Scholar