Russell Shuttleworth

What's so ‘critical’ about critical disability studies?

This article self-reflexively turns the focus on disability studies to consider why critical disability studies (CDS) is emerging as the preferred nomenclature and whether this constitutes a radical paradigm shift, or simply signifies a maturing of the discipline. We first trace the emergence of disability studies as part of the disability rights movement, which harboured a primarily materialist critique against the normative status quo. The diversification of critical social theory that has occurred in recent years has opened up new modes of critical enquiry. Yet there are nevertheless several principles that we feel it is important to maintain and we briefly outline these: (1) the irreducibility of social life to objective facts; (2) the requirement of linking theory with praxis in the struggle for an autonomous and participatory society; (3) the necessity that a discipline or field of study be aware of its own historicity and critically reflect on its conceptual framework; and (4) the need to engage in a dialogue with other cultures on the issues and concepts of current significance. We subsequently trace some of the areas where critical theory has been employed in the study of disability. Critical social thought, grounded in the principles we discuss and developing innovative lines of enquiry, has the potential to render a wide range of issues and discourses heretofore obscured visible in the study of disability.

The Dilemma of Disabled Masculinity

A much-cited point by those who study the intersection of gender and disability is that masculinity and disability are in conflict with each other because disability is associated with being dependent and helpless whereas masculinity is associated with being powerful and autonomous, thus creating a lived and embodied dilemma for disabled men. This article maps and critically evaluates the conceptual development of this dilemma of disabled masculinity, tracing how several developments in the fields of disability studies and the critical study of men and masculinities have shaped sociological understandings of disabled masculinity. We suggest that, while social science scholarship has increasingly moved beyond a static understanding and toward a dynamic view of the articulation and interaction between masculinity and disability, there are nevertheless several problems that require attention. The most critical issue conceptually is that the focus of study has been more on masculinity and how it intersects with ‘disability’ as an almost generic category, rather than on how masculinity (or masculinities) intersect(s) differently with various types of impairment. Thus, though there is quite a bit of research on the dilemma of disabled masculinity for men who acquire a physical impairment post-childhood and for groups of men with diverse impairments studied as if they were a homogenous group, less research has been conducted with men who have specific impairments, particularly early-onset, intellectual or degenerative impairments. In this paper we urge researchers to open up the concept of intersectionality to accommodate a range of differences in bodily, cognitive, intellectual and behavioral types (impairments) in their interaction with various masculinities and to show more explicitly how context and life phase contribute to this dynamism.

A Masculine Perspective of Gendered Topics in the Research Literature on Males and Females with Intellectual Disability.

Abstract Background A focus on male social pathologies may have evolved within parts of the intellectual disability research literature. This article explores this notion and makes some connections between mainstream gender theory about hegemonic masculinity and the current gendered discourse in intellectual disability research. Method We conducted a thematic analysis of all journal article titles from four prominent intellectual disability journals where “man,” “woman,” “men,” “women,” “male,” “female,” “girl,” and “boy” were mentioned in the title. Results Thematic differences were identified between articles that focused on males or females, with less research attention on male health compared with female health. A strong focus was evident on problematised male sexual behaviour. Conclusions There is a distinct difference evident between articles that problematise males and articles for females encouraging health promotion that suggests a disparate focus on male social pathologies. A deeper contextual analysis of unique sex differences in research is proposed.

Masculinity theory in applied research with men and boys with intellectual disability.

Researchers in intellectual disability have had limited theoretical engagement with mainstream theories of masculinity. In this article, the authors consider what mainstream theories of masculinity may offer to applied research on, and hence to therapeutic interventions with, men and boys with intellectual disability. An example from one research project that explored male sexual health illustrates how using masculinity theory provided greater insight into gendered data. Finally, we discuss the following five topics to illustrate how researchers might use theories of masculinity: (a) fathering, (b) male physical expression, (c) sexual expression, (d) mens health, and (e) underweight and obesity. Theories of masculinity offer an additional framework to analyze and conceptualize gendered data; we challenge researchers to engage with this body of work.

Gendered service delivery : a masculine and feminine perspective on staff gender

Despite acknowledgement that paid caregivers have a significant impact on the lives of people with intellectual disability, the subjective experience of staff gender is rarely considered in research. Qualitative data from a study on the sexual health needs of men and boys with intellectual disability is presented. We designed this study to determine what impact staff gender has on the sexual health needs of men and boys with intellectual disability. Findings suggest that although staff traverse the same geographies of care, they do it in uniquely gendered ways. Staff gender is an important consideration when dealing with sexual health matters and can enhance the type and quality of relationships between people with intellectual disability.

Penile hygiene : puberty, paraphimosis and personal care for men and boys with an intellectual disability

BACKGROUND Supporting men and boys with an intellectual disability (ID) to meet their penile hygiene needs is perhaps one of the least acknowledged but most confronting issues facing care staff. The delivery of intimate hygiene can be a challenging topic particularly as it has been drawn into the emerging sexuality discourse and the ongoing abuse narrative. Compounding this challenge is the lack of guidance in intimate care for support staff. In addition, whereas the male with an ID outnumber the female, female care staff greatly outnumber male staff. Whether this situation affects outcomes for men and boys with an ID is unknown but it is an issue which should be examined. METHOD This paper reports data from two separate studies, one quantitative the other qualitative, which sought to explore penile hygiene as a male health issue. RESULTS Results show the practice of care staff to be inconsistent, the views and values of care staff to be divergent. Some patterns and contextual differences were identified depending upon the gender of care staff. An emerging dialogue described some of the positive contributions that male staff make to men and boys with an ID. CONCLUSIONS The penile health needs of men and boys with an ID are being compromised by a lack of guidance, training, knowledge and limited gender-sensitive care.

From diminished men to conditionally masculine: sexuality and Australian men and adolescent boys with intellectual disability.

Men and boys with intellectual disability represent a unique group who have hitherto been overlooked by researchers and theorists exploring men and masculinities. Qualitative data from an Australian ethnographic study focused on the sexual health needs of men and adolescent boys with moderate to profound intellectual disability. Findings suggest that masculinity for this group of men is more a biopsychosocial phenomenon than a social construct organised around heteronormative ideals. The conditional masculinity of the men participating in the study was based instead on a number of intrinsic and external factors, which are described in detail.

The Sociological Imaginary and Disability Enquiry in Late Modernity

Mills’s idea of the sociological imagination has captured many generations of scholars interested in the difficult social issues that people grapple with in their lives. Yet, sociology has traditionally had a poor record of linking disabled people’s ‘private’ accounts of their difficulties to ‘public’ issues. We contend that disability is still marginal to the sociological imaginary, despite attempts by disability studies and subdisciplines within sociology to make the concept relevant to the larger discipline. There is a range of conceptual tensions in sociology such as public/private and normal/abnormal that can be better illuminated by focusing on disability. We argue that critical disability studies, with its reimagining of disability within late modernity, may be better positioned to make more effectively the case for disability’s significance to the sociological imaginary. Facilitating dialogue with sociology on the concept of disability, however, may require disability scholars to develop more explicit strategies of engagement.

Understanding decision-making towards housework among women with upper limb repetitive strain injury

BACKGROUND Among women with upper limb repetitive strain injury (RSI), occupational therapy interventions include education to facilitate ergonomic practices in housework. From a client-centred perspective, an understanding of womens decision-making about housework is needed to design effective occupational therapy programmes. This study addresses a gap in research in this area by exploring womens views about changing housework habits. AIM The aim was to construct a conceptual representation to explain decision-making in housework by drawing on experiences of a sample of Singapore Chinese women with upper limb RSI from one hand therapy clinic. METHODS Based on a constructivist grounded theory methodology, data were collected through in-depth interviewing with 15 women. Interviews were audiotaped and transcribed. Data were analysed with line by line coding, focussed coding and axial coding with constant comparison throughout data collection. RESULTS Decision-making in housework among these women involved three main themes: (i) emotional attachment to housework; (ii) cognitively informed decision; and (iii) emotionally influenced decision. Women with upper limb RSI had to make cognitive decisions for or against a change in housework to manage their condition. However, the womens cognitively informed decisions were shaped by their emotional attachment to housework. As such, they experienced strong emotional barriers to changing their housework practices even when they had cognitively accepted the necessity and possibility of making a change. CONCLUSIONS Therapists need to be aware that counselling to address the emotional barriers experienced by women is important during ergonomic education.

A literature review on vulvodynia and distress

Distress about a sexual problem is a necessary part of diagnosing female sexual dysfunction. It is an important way to distinguish between a sexual problem and normal sexual variation and has implications for treatment seeking, motivation for therapy and prognosis. The concept of distress, however, has not been clearly defined and is complex and poorly understood. Furthermore, there has been limited research into distress related to genital pain disorders. This paper explores the concept of distress within the field of vulvodynia research, specifically the distress that results from genital pain. Due to the limited research into distress relating specifically to genital pain this review will contextualise the available literature within the larger context of distress related to other female sexual dysfunctions. The discussion includes the current and future Diagnostic and Statistical Manual definitions for genital pain, as well as general definitions of distress. It also explores distress in the genital pain and general female sexual dysfunction literature and discusses its diagnostic, research and clinical implications.