Lessons from Critical and Transnational Disability Perspectives for Social Work

Authors

Katie Savin, California State University, SacramentoFollow
Eunkyung Chung, School of Social Welfare, University of California, BerkeleyFollow
Nev Jones, School of Social Work, University of PittsburghFollow
Paul Sterzing, School of Social Welfare, University of California, BerkeleyFollow
Vandana Chaudhry, CUNY College of Staten IslandFollow

Keywords

Disability justice, critical theory, Global South, debility

Abstract

This paper calls on social work to incorporate anti-oppressive paradigms in research, practice, education, and policy by developing a critical understanding of disability. Critical disability studies is an interdisciplinary field that challenges hegemonic framings that individualize and pathologize disability and recognizes the ways in which ableism intersects with other systems of oppression. Transnational disability studies provides explicit attention to the power dynamics between the Global North and the Global South. Adopting a perspective grounded in these two frameworks offers direction for social workers to apply the principles of disability justice in their choices for clinical interventions, policy goals, classroom strategies, and research methodologies.

Recommended Citation

Savin, Katie; Chung, Eunkyung; Jones, Nev; Sterzing, Paul; and Chaudhry, Vandana (2024) "Lessons from Critical and Transnational Disability Perspectives for Social Work," The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare: Vol. 51: Iss. 1, Article 5.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15453/0191-5096.4732
Available at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jssw/vol51/iss1/5