Social Interaction with Adults with Severe Intellectual Disability: Having Fun and Hanging Out

Abstract

Legitimizing mirth and sharing time in social interactions may supplement paid worker job satisfaction and increase opportunities for social inclusion by people with severe intellectual disability.

A model of processes that underpin positive relationships for adults with severe intellectual disability

“…Activities such as vocal play and routine games have been identifi ed in the child development literature (Bergen, 2006) and applied through intensive interaction with people with profound disability (Nind & Hewett, 1994), but previously have not been utilised with people with severe intellectual disability. The examples of routine and comedic interactions provide practical suggestions of ways to engage with people with severe disability (Johnson et al, 2012). Having fun has been recognised as an integral part of all relationships, rather than confi ned to relationships involving people with disability (Duck, 2007;Martin, 2007).…”

“…Legitimising mirth may result in greater worker satisfaction, a clearer understanding of their role, increased social interaction, and a more attractive workplace for new employees. A more complete discussion of the role of mirth in the workplace is reported elsewhere (Johnson et al, 2012).…”

“…So I then squeezed his arms and then fl exed mine … and said like, you know, look at that sort of, look at those guns, and he looked at me, and then looked at my gut and then patted my gut [laughs] and with a wry smile walked away in front of everyone. (CDSW13; Johnson et al, 2012) Banter relied on speech, so was always initiated by affi nity members. It was characterised by exaggerated vocal tones and infl ections, physical gestures, and facial expressions.…”

Studying abroad inclusively

“…New experiences were viewed as exciting and enjoyable-they were adventures abroad with friends. As in previous research ''fun'' was described dynamically (Johnson et al, 2012). Sometimes fun derived from exploration and recreation: ''Today was so fun because we went everywhere in England and Big Ben and also exploring everywhere in England.''…”

Counting inclusion with Chantal Mouffe: a radical democratic approach to intellectual disability research

“…Purposes behind social inclusion can be individual or collective. Individual aims include increasing confidence, happiness, and well-being (Forrester-Jones et al 2006;Johnson et al 2012), whereas collective purposes include combating societal patterns of poverty, unemployment, discrimination, stigma, and abuse (Mahar, Cobigo, and Stuart 2013;McConkey and Collins 2010;Power 2013a). Thinking of these two kinds of aims together, we can imagine situations in which individual and collective aims conflict.…”