Although social groups have "insiders," this construct has not been measured within the disability advocacy community. Examining 405 individuals who applied for an advocacy training program, this study examined the nature of insiderness within the disability advocacy community and ties to individual roles. Participants showed differences…

Parents of individuals with disabilities face many challenges in accessing appropriate school services for their offspring. While advocacy programs are becoming increasingly common, little is known about the nature of parent advocacy including its related constructs. The purpose of this study was to examine the associations between motivation,…

Parent advocacy is often critical for families of individuals with disabilities. Prior research has suggested that parent advocacy occurs across three levels: individual, peer, and systemic. Yet, little empirical research has identified the correlates of advocacy for each level. For this study, we examined the survey responses of 246 parents of…

Increasingly, interventions are being developed and tested with families of color, including Latino families of transition-aged youth with autism. However, without culturally responsive measures, it is difficult to determine whether an intervention is effective. The purpose of this study was to improve the cultural responsiveness of measures…

Medical students with disabilities constitute 7.6% of allopathic (MD) and 4.3% of osteopathic (DO) programs, and they are entitled to reasonable accommodation, per the Americans with Disabilities Act. However, research has demonstrated that disabled medical students often encounter barriers when accessing accommodations. In response to these…

Historically caregivers of individuals with disabilities have engaged in individual (for their children) and systemic advocacy (for others). Although it is widely known that caregivers advocate for their school-aged children with disabilities, little is known about how caregivers who have infants and toddlers (birth to three years old) with delays…

As the United States' first disability-specific leadership academy in state government, the Leadership Academy for Excellence in Disability Services is a year-long competency-based training experience designed for employees who manage programs that impact the lives of Tennesseans with intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families.…

Although it is widely known that caregivers advocate for their school-aged children with disabilities, little is understood about how caregivers who have infants and toddlers with delays or disabilities advocate for their young children. The birth-to-three period may be the beginning of some parents' advocacy efforts and it is possible their…

While there are opportunities for families to fulfill leadership roles in early intervention, families often report feeling disempowered and unprepared to become leaders. To this end, in this pilot study, we evaluated the effectiveness and feasibility of an 8-hour leadership program for 20 parents of children who are receiving, or recently…

Britney Spears's 2020 testimony about her 13-year conservatorship highlighted ethical concerns surrounding surrogate decision making. Social workers engage with families and clients in conservatorship/guardianship arrangements. However, social work educational programs spend little time preparing students for surrogate decision making and…

Disability disclosure is a complex, ongoing process involves navigating medical, legal, educational, economic, and employment systems. Disclosure decision making occurs for all disabled individuals regardless of how apparent their disability is to others. Professionals working in disability resource positions, who identify as disabled, navigate…

Influenced by revolutionary mothering, activists of color, and radical feminists, this article explores Neurodivergent families through the lens of Disability Critical Race Theory. As a parent of an Autistic child, I embark on redefining my role by integrating art and design into community advocacy for Autistic communities. I challenge unjust…

Background: The measurement of equality is often difficult for groups who are weakly defined or poorly represented in official datasets. Social statistics are an essential component in rights recognition and advocacy because they make protected groups of persons visible and reveal the extent of their inequalities in comparison with population…

Families who have children with delays or disabilities are often expected to become advocates for their children. Despite this inherent expectation, there is limited research available focused on advocacy during the early years (birth to three). The purpose of this study was to use qualitative inquiry, specifically semi-structured interviews, to…

The term 'inclusive education' has evolved to connote various meanings and recently, neoliberalism has impacted how 'inclusion' is understood and enacted. In this paper, we use a disability studies in education framework to compare and contrast radical against incrementalist and reductionist approaches to educational reform related to students…