Research

In this joint research project with self-advocates from People First Carinthia (Mensch Zuerst Kärnten), the possibilities and challenges of de-institutionalisation are examined from the perspective of people with learning difficulties. The project follows a participatory research approach and is based on the right of "all persons with disabilities to live in the community with equal opportunities for choice with others" (UN-CRPD, art. 19).

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The research project aims to investigate the different connections of care experienced young people to their family in the transition to adult life. At the same time, it is to be researched how important family members are for care leavers in comparison to other reference persons and what significance they have for self-formation and for the establishment of affiliations. For this purpose, biographically oriented, narrative interviews with care leavers will be conducted in the project, which will be supplemented by the creation of network maps. The data analysis will be carried out according to the procedures of the Grounded Theory Methodology and by means of computer-assisted network analyses. In the sense of participatory research, a reference group of care experienced young people will provide advisory support for the project work.

This ongoing research focus explores the meanings and implications that ableism has for the field of social pedagogy. The concept of ableism is rooted in disability activism and Disability Studies and refers to a human corporeal norm reinforced by the dis/ability binary and the de/valuing of abilities. Ableism forces a critical shift in perspective from disability to abledness, which is highly relevant to disabled people as well as beyond disability embodiment and the dis/ability binary.

This project aims to analyze representations of (intellectual) disability in a sample of Québec court reports that fall under the Québec Youth Protection Act.

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Inclusion and intersectionality represent important concepts as well as analytic tools for reflecting on the powers of knowledge production. A critical reflection of multidimensional disadvantages and privileges is crucial in the context of educational research and teaching, but a far-reaching power analysis requires a view beyond the field of Educational Science. Scholarly directions such as Disability Studies and Critical Migration Studies, which have emerged from political and social movements, pose productive challenges to hegemonic educational perspectives.

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This qualitative study explored the lives of mothers and fathers with intellectual disabilities in Austria, focusing on the complex meaning of societal attributions and perceptions for their parental self-understanding. Following Disability Studies’ critique of power structures, a participatory approach bridged research with the interests of disabled people. Within a hermeneutic framework, three types of data were analyzed; internet-newsgroups, interviews with social work professionals and with mothers and fathers with intellectual disabilities. Results highlight intersectional disadvantages and the relevance of ableism in de/constructing gendered parenting ideals and dis/ability.

The purpose of this study is to determine a strategy to build systems’ capacity to accommodate the support and learning needs of parents with intellectual impairment and, in turn, improve the life chances of their children. One objective is to investigate the support needs and service utilisation patterns of parents with intellectual impairment. Another objective is to examine the pathways of parents with intellectual impairment into and within the child and youth protection system. The study will highlight strengths upon which to build (e.g., established inter-agency working relationships), as well as service gaps and other systems’ capacity building needs.

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