The biographies of young people with motor impairment

Abstract

There is a lot of research investigating the effect of impairment on disabled young people but most of this research is from an adult perspective; health and education professionals, parents and disabled adults reflecting back on their childhood.  Researchers have generally ignored disabled young people’s views and opinions, and as a result their voices have often not been heard.  This study investigated the life stories of nine young people with motor impairment, three girls and six boys, by writing and analysing their biographies.  Each took part in a series of auto/biographical interviews in which they were asked to talk about their lives.  These interviews were transcribed and transformed into written biographies.  The final biographies were analysed and four themes emerged:  family, friends, school and living with impairment.  Although these themes were evident in all nine biographies, each young person provided an individual and different point of view.  This study supports the premise that a disabled young person is unique, and as such, it is inappropriate to homogenise and categorise them according to their medical and/or educational label.  In addition, the collaboration that can be developed between the researcher and the disabled young person, through the use of auto/biographical methodology, is one way of actively acknowledging the participation rights of disabled young people.

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