Childhood disability and clothing

Abstract

This chapter considers the relationship between childhood disability and clothing. It stems from the understanding that a physical disability may be used as a cue to categorise a person as abnormal, different, or indeed 'other', and considers how clothing is used in the negotiation and presentation of self. This chapter reviews literature to discuss the social and symbolic status of clothingboth mainstream clothing ("fashion") and adaptive clothing -for disabled children. In doing so, it provides an enhanced understanding of the lived experiences of these 'other' childhoods. A variety of normalising techniques are discussed throughout this chapter.For instance, 'making do' with ready-to-wear clothing through resourceful adaptations; deflecting attention from a disability toward more normative but slightly discrediting attributes; and concealment of the disability using clothing. Collating scholarship from a range of disciplines (including but not limited to geography, sociology, disability studies, health, and clothing and textiles studies) this chapter argues that rehabilitation professionals need to take clothing-related issues faced by children with disabilities more seriously (as opposed to seeing them as solely aesthetic), so that opportunities for social participation can be maximised.