“Telling Stories” Of Disability Identity: Narrative Inquiry While Presuming Competence Of Adults With N/IDD

• In Event: AERA Research in Progress Roundtable Session Three
  In Invited Roundtable: Research-in-Progress RT012 (Friday)

Abstract

This work-in-progress explores how disability identity is enacted and acknowledged in a five-week, competency-based creative writing class for adults with neurodevelopmental and intellectual disabilities (N/IDD). Guided by Oliver’s social model of disability and Darling and Heckert’s orientations toward disability, the study uses narrative inquiry and qualitative observations to examine how students’ identities emerge in writing and interactions with instructors and support staff. Early findings suggest students frequently write about restrictions imposed on their lives. While staff initially reinforce interventionist models, their practices shift toward presuming competence across five weeks. These results highlight creative writing as a valuable context for disability identity development and demonstrate its potential to advance disability justice in educational and community settings.

Author

• Paige Richmond, University of Minnesota