TOWARD INCLUSIVE AND RIGHTS-BASED SOCIAL WORK PRACTICE WITH PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

Abstract

Today, practice with individuals with disabilities in the area of social work requires that there be conceptual approaches to disability that move beyond the paradigms of deficits and medicalization. This paper proposes a critical analysis of the concept of disability in social work practice, social work education, and social work supervision, with special emphasis on the social and human rights models of disability. The paper discusses recent research on theoretical approachesand their influence on social work practice by highlighting the role of supervision in social work practice with individuals with disabilities. It is argued that the models of disability tend to get pulled apart by considerations of care, competence, and creativity. Supervision is viewed as a special context of social work practice that allows social workers to work through their assumptions, tolerate structural impediments, and maintain a person-centered/rights-based approach to practice with individuals with disabilities. An integrative approach that considers disability as a social production is proposed by juxtaposing disability studies research with research in social work practice, social work education, and social work supervision.