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Psychology of Disability, the Springer Series on Rehabilitation

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Psychology of Disability, the Springer Series on Rehabilitation Springer Series on Rehabilitation Myron G. Eisenberg, PhD, Series Editor Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Hampton, VA Thomas E. Backer, PhD, Consulting Editor Human Interaction Research Institute, Los Angeles, CA 2003 Psychology of Disability, 2nd ed. Carolyn L. Vash, PhD, and Nancy M. Crewe, PhD 2003 The Handbook of Rehabilitation Counseling T. F. Riggar, EdD, and Dennis R. Maki, PhD, CRC, NCC, Editors 1998 Medical Aspects of Disability: A Handbook for the Rehabilitation Professional, 2nd ed. Myron G. Eisenberg, PhD, Robert L. Glueckauf, PhD, and Herbert H. Zaretsky, PhD 1997 Rehabilitation Counseling: Profession and Practice Dennis Maki, PhD, and Ted Riggar, EdD 1994 Personality and Adversity: Psychospiritual Aspects of Rehabilitation Carolyn L. Vash, PhD 1991 Treating Families of Brain-Injury Survivors Paul R. Sachs, PhD 1991 Disability in the United States: A Portrait From National Data Susan Thompson-Hoffman, MA, and Inez Fitzgerald Storck, MA, Editors 1988 Family Interventions Throughout Chronic Illness and Disability P. W. Power, SdD, CRC, NCC, A. E. Dell’Orto, PhD, CRC, and M. B. Gibbons, RN, MS, CPNP 1986 Applied Rehabilitation Counseling T. F. Riggar, EdD, Dennis R. Maki, PhD, and Arnold Wolf, PhD 1985 Handbook of Private Sector Rehabilitation Lewis J. Taylor, PhD, CRC, Marjorie Golter, MS, CRC, Gary Golter, MA, and Thomas E. Backer, PhD, Editors 1984 Chronic Illness and Disabilities Through the Life Span: Effects on Self and Family Myron G. Eisenberg, PhD, Lafaye C. Sutkin, PhD, and Mary A. Jansen, PhD 1982 Behavioral Approaches to Rehabilitation Elaine Greif, PhD, and Ruth G. Matarazzo, PhD 1982 Disabled People as Second-Class Citizens Myron G. Eisenberg, PhD, et al. 1981 The Psychology of Disability Carolyn L. Vash, PhD Carolyn Vash, PhD, is a psychologist whose current professional interests span theoretical and philosophical psychology, humanistic psychology, psychology of the arts, and the psychology of religion. She conducts a limited consulting practice based in Altadena, Califor- nia but devotes most of her time to writing. She has previously worked as a rehabilitation psychologist, administrator, researcher, and educator. In addition to the first edition of Psychology of Disability, she has had two other books published by Springer Publishing Company. Their titles were The Burnt-Out Administrator (1980) and Personality and Adversity (1994). Her next book examines the nature of consciousness through lenses provided by the most ancient of wisdom teachings and the most recent conceptions of complex- ity science. Nancy Crewe, PhD, is a rehabilitation psy- chologist and professor at Michigan State Uni- versity where she coordinates the master’s degree program in rehabilitation counseling. Prior to taking that position she spent 16 years as a faculty member and clinician in the De- partment of Physical Medicine and Rehabili- tation at the University of Minnesota. Her research interests have revolved around psy- chological and social aspects of spinal cord injury. She won the American Rehabilitation Counseling Association’s 1997 Research Award for Life Stories of People With Long- Term Spinal Cord Injury. Previous books in- clude Employment After Spinal Cord Injury (1978), written with G. T. Athels- tan and A. S. Bower, and Independent Living for Physically Disabled People (1983), edited with Irving K. Zola. Current interests include narrative psychol- ogy, spirituality and disability, and complexity science. Psychology of Disability Second Edition Carolyn L. Vash,PhD Nancy M. Crewe, PhD Copyright 2004 by Springer Publishing Company, Inc. All rights reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of Springer Publishing Company, Inc. Springer Publishing Company, Inc. 536 Broadway New York, NY 10012-3955 Acquisitions Editor: Sheri W. Sussman Production Editor: Sara Yoo Cover design by Joanne Honigman 0405060708/54321 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Vash, Carolyn L. Psychology of disability / Carolyn L. Vash, Nancy M. Crewe.—2nd ed. p. cm.—(Springer series on rehabilitation) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-8261-3342-8 1. People with disabilities—Psychology. 2. People with disabilities— Rehabilitation. I. Crewe, Nancy M. II. Title. III. Series. HV3011.V37 2003 362.4'048'019—dc21 2003052980 Printed in the United States of America by Integrated Book Technology. Contents Foreword Roberta B. Trieschmann, PhD vii Preface ix Introduction xi Part I The Disability Experience 1. The Person: Reactions to Disablement 3 2. The World: People With Disabilities in a Handicapping World 26 3. Surviving: Living Independently 46 4. Loving: The Family 64 5. Pairing: Sexuality and Intimacy 85 6. Working: Getting Educated and Employed 107 7. Playing: Friendship and Recreation 129 8. Transcending: Disability as Growth Experience 146 Part II Interventions 9. The Long Arm of the Law 165 10. Individual Differences 193 11. Psychogogic Approaches 221 12. Peer Counseling and Related Services 251 13. Psychotherapeutic Approaches 267 14. Looking Ahead 281 References 301 Index 321 v This page intentionally left blank Foreword What a gift this second edition of Psychology of Disability is! Such wisdom, such clarity, such practicality. What a gift to have the opportunity to experi- ence the partnership of Carolyn Vash and Nancy Crewe, each a recognized leader in the field of rehabilitation of persons with physical disabilities. Each woman has decades of valuable and practical experience in the counseling psychology and vocational rehabilitation arenas, giving them personal experi- ence with thousands of individuals who have faced the challenges of surviving the draconian financial web of social legislation, individuals who have coped with the psychosocial issues of relationships in a society that does not openly embrace those with disabilities, and individuals who have found satisfaction and contentment from life in the family, the workplace, and community. Life for people with disabilities has changed dramatically since 1945 when the United States was flooded with individuals injured in WWII and those who had survived the polio epidemics of the 1940s and 1950s. This influx of people challenged the notion that individuals with impairments should not expect to participate in society fully and publicly and should be content to remain at home, cared for by family. Thus the fields of medical and vocational rehabilitation evolved and gained great credibility in the 1960s through major infusions of federal funds for state departments of vocational rehabilitation, rehabilitation research and training centers in major medical schools, and training programs for psychologists and vocational rehabilitation counselors in universities. In this era, the professionals were viewed as the fount of all wisdom regarding disability, but unfortunately this “wisdom” was sometimes nothing more than ivory-tower philosophical speculation, especially when it came to the process of adjusting psychologically to disability. Although most professionals were very well intentioned and sincerely desired to help, their personal knowledge of the disability process was limited to textbooks and offices. In the hospitals, many physicians took a “father knows best” attitude, but despite helpful medical knowledge, this paternalistic attitude grated. Thus, the disability rights movement arose in the early 1970s in order to give people with disabilities a greater voice in their own rehabilitation planning and service delivery system. Eventually, federal and state governmental policies shifted to include those with disabilities in the overall right to have equal opportunity in the community and at work, and with regard to health care services. vii viii Foreword It is helpful to place the changes in the lives of those with disabilities in the context of the changes occurring in American society. In the 1950s and even early 1960s, America was a country in which the interests and attitudes of the White, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant—and, we should add, male—group dominated. However, in the last forty years, this country has evolved into a celebration of multicultural diversity so that people with disabilities are one of many groups expecting full participation in society. But this book becomes an opportunity not only to celebrate our multicultural diversity, but also to celebrate our unity. Each chapter addresses issues that are relevant to every- one. People with disabilities have the same needs, hopes, and dreams as the readers of this book. And this book addresses issues that are crucial to all of our lives and presents some of the challenges that a person with disability may face which the reader may or may not face. The abiding message is that we are all part of the family of man, all welcome, and that the ways in which we are the same are vastly greater than the ways in which we are different. The beauty of this book is in its essential humanity. Both Drs. Vash and Crewe began their careers in the 1960s, somewhat prior to the advent of the disability rights movement, and thus they have had the opportunity to observe and participate in the almost dramatic changes at the societal level leading to the inclusion of people with disabilities in all phases of community life. Furthermore, each of them has had a profound impact on the attitudes of two generations of rehabilitation professionals
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