Disability is a tool for human service practitioners to use in understanding disability from an empowerment/social model perspective. The text addresses policy, theory, description, and practice from a strengths-based viewpoint, stressing disability as a difference rather than as dysfunction. The book establishes the historical and societal context in which those with disabilities are marginalized, discusses the major groupings of disabilities, and offers a model for assessment and practice.

The first Austalasian text on community disability services to provide a ready source of evidence based practice and service management guidelines. It seeks to provide an integration of principles, policy and practice in disability service provision in the 21st century.

Disability and Social Work Education: Practice and Policy Issues presents insightful strategies from leading experts that address the gaps between social work and individuals with disabilities, and offers different perspectives on how to integrate practice with social justice, accessibility to services, and human rights.

Read this book to gain an understanding of the knowledge, values and skills required for effective practice in the field of intellectual disability and the opportunities which this work offers for multidisciplinary collaboration for social change. Social Work Practice and Intellectual Disability identifies and discusses: - The changing definitions of intellectual disability, also called 'learning disability' - The theory and practice of working with people with intellectual disabilities and their families - The core tasks of assessment, planning, monitoring and review - The values of participation and inclusion in action Illustrated with numerous case studies, discussion points and clear explanations, this addition to the Practical Social Work Series is an indispensable resource. It is ideally suited both for the continued professional development of qualified practitioners, and for pre-qualifying students new to the area.

From Disability Theory to Practice pays tribute to Professor Jerome Bickenbach’s highly influential and immensely important work. Professor Bickenbach is a scholar, policy-maker, and activist, of international stature. This volume brings together ten friends, mentors, and mentees, who have penned eight chapters engaging in topics that range, as the title suggests and as Professor Bickenbach’s work has spanned, from theory to practice. This volume begins, much as Professor Bickenbach’s career has, by grappling with philosophical and sociological issues related to the definition of disability, its relation to health, and conceptions of justice for people with disabilities. Subsequently, these conceptions are utilized to advance policy suggestions that range from assisted dying legislation, mental health policy, and the implementation of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health.

Disability raises profound and fundamental issues: questions about human embodiment and well-being; dignity, respect, justice and equality; personal and social identity. It raises pressing questions for educational, health, reproductive, and technology policy, and confronts the scope and direction of the human and civil rights movements. Yet it is only recently that disability has become the subject of the sustained and rigorous philosophical inquiry that it deserves. The Oxford Handbook of Philosophy and Disability is the first comprehensive volume on the subject. The volume's contents range from debates over the definition of disability to the challenges posed by disability for justice and dignity; from the relevance of disability for respect, other interpersonal attitudes, and intimate relationships to its significance for health policy, biotechnology, and human enhancement; from the ways that disability scholarship can enrich moral and political philosophy, to the importance of physical and intellectual disabilities for the philosophy of mind and action. The contributions reflect the variety of areas of expertise, intellectual orientations, and personal backgrounds of their authors. Some are founding philosophers of disability; others are promising new scholars; still others are leading philosophers from other areas writing on disability for the first time. Many have disabilities themselves. This volume boldly explores neglected issues, offers fresh perspectives on familiar ones, and ultimately expands philosophy's boundaries. More than merely presenting an overview of existing work, this Handbook will chart the growth and direction of a vital and burgeoning field for years to come.