Communication Disability in Fiji: Community Cultural Beliefs and Attitudes

Abstract

Purpose: Beliefs about communication disability vary according to the cultural context, and influence people’s attitudes and help-seeking behaviour. Little is known about Fijians with communication disability or the communities in which they live, and specialist services for people with communication disability are yet to be established in Fiji. An understanding of Fijian beliefs about the causes of communication disability and attitudes towards people with communication disability may inform future service development.Method: An interpretivist qualitative research paradigm and the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) framework informed this project’s design. Scenarios of adults and children with communication disability were presented to 144 participants, randomly sampled across multiple public spaces in two Fiji cities. Thematic analysis of responses to 15 survey questions revealed participant beliefs about the causes and attitudes towards people with communication disability.Results: Three clusters describing perceived causes emerged from the analysis - internal, external, and supernatural. Major clusters across child and adult scenarios were similar; however, response categories within the scenarios differed. Community attitudes to people with communication disability were predominantly negative. These community attitudes influenced individual participants’ beliefs about educational and employment opportunities for Fijians with communication disability.Conclusion: Determination and acknowledgement of individuals’ belief systems informs development of culturally appropriate intervention programmes and health promotion activities.Implications: Speech-language pathologists and other professionals working with Fijian communities should acknowledge community belief systems and develop culturally-specific health promotion activities, assessments, and interventions.

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“…The influence of community/societal attitudes and beliefs on the beliefs and attitudes of teachers cannot be ignored. Collectively, studies by Hopf et al (2017), Kuzma et al (2016) and Kamenopoulou and Dukpa (2018), in Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Bhutan, respectively, highlight several attitudinal barriers to the effective implementation of education for the inclusion of students with a disability in these LMICs.…”

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“…The influence of community/societal attitudes and beliefs on the beliefs and attitudes of teachers cannot be ignored. Collectively, studies by Hopf et al (2017), Kuzma et al (2016) and Kamenopoulou and Dukpa (2018), in Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Bhutan, respectively, highlight several attitudinal barriers to the effective implementation of disability inclusion in education in these LMICs.…”

Tutorial: Speech Assessment for Multilingual Children Who Do Not Speak the Same Language(s) as the Speech-Language Pathologist

“…Families may have multiple cultural influences upon their values, language preferences, kin structure, child rearing practices, religion, roles, responsibilities of family members (as caregivers, disciplinarians, socializers, and/or decision makers), perceptions of health, and behaviors across different domains of their life (McNamara, 2007). Cultural health and wellness practices may be based upon the family's explanatory models or the belief systems used by a cultural group to explain for health, illness, and disability (Hopf, McLeod, McDonagh, & Rakanace, in press; Kleinman, Eisenberg, & Good, 1978). For example, Kathard (1998) described a family who believed that their child's stuttering was a result either of the baby being left out in the rain or the parents' failure to inform their ancestors about the baby's imminent arrival.…”