Using Photovoice to listen to adults with intellectual disabilities on being part of the community

Abstract

Imagine if you were offered a glance through the lens of a very unique photographer: a member of your community who has an intellectual or developmental disability (ID/DD). A community-based participatory research method, Photovoice, was used to enable seven individuals with ID/DD the opportunity to document their lives through the use of photography and discuss their interests, hopes and dreams. Specifically, this methodology provided them with opportunities to share their concerns about their community access and communicate with the larger community using photographs and the collective ideas of the group. Common themes were revealed among the participants, including their hidden talents, community membership and sense of belonging, consumerism and making choices, desired independence, limited connections to the community and a desire to be treated as adults. Two themes Á community membership and desire for independence Á are expounded upon, as they appeared to be the most relevant to improving one's quality of life and greater selfdetermination.

Part 1: A review of using photovoice as a disability research method: Implications for eliciting the experiences of persons with disabilities on the Community Based Rehabilitation programme in Namibia

“…Photovoice was used as the sole research design in 17 studies. Four studies (Jurkowski 2008 ; Ottmann & Crosbie 2013 ; Russinova et al 2014 ; Schleien et al 2013 ) combined photovoice with another qualitative method (focus group discussion, diary interview, questionnaire, semi-structured interview, observation, care proxy response). Only one study (Russinova et al 2014 ) combined photovoice with mixed-effects regression models.…”

“…This was to determine community perception on the photo gallery and community outcomes (Schleien et al 2013 ).…”

“…Provides support in the technical aspects of utilising digital cameras, prompts to complete photography assignments and transportation to and from programme meetings or photography locations (Schleien et al 2013 ).…”

‘We need to share our stories’: the lives of Pakistanis with intellectual disability and their guardians

“…(2016) used PV with Latinos with intellectual disability to address beliefs about healthy living, and Schleien et al . (2013) used PV with people with intellectual disability to understand meanings of community membership and independence.…”

An investigation of the role of social support on physical activity participation among adults with intellectual disability

“…The Accommodating support people and gate-keepers Family or paid support staff who assist individuals during data collection, particularly in interviews or focus groups, may often answer on behalf of the person, talk over them or influence their responses (e.g., Llewellyn & Northway, 2008;Schleiena, Brakea, Millera, & Walton, 2013). A small number of studies acknowledged the integral role these people can play and invested time in building the relationship with families and paid support staff to ensure open and ongoing communication processes about the research (Dias et al, 2012).…”