The dilemma for staff in 'playing a game' with a person with profound intellectual disabilities: empowerment, inclusion and competence in interactional practice.

Finlay, W. M. L and Antaki, Charles and Walton, Chris and Stribling, Penny (2008) The dilemma for staff in 'playing a game' with a person with profound intellectual disabilities: empowerment, inclusion and competence in interactional practice. Sociology of Health and Illness, 30 (4). pp. 531-549. ISSN 0141-9889

[thumbnail of Playing_a_game.pdf]
Preview
PDF (Playing_a_game.pdf)
Playing_a_game.pdf

Download (270kB)

Abstract

Games between staff and people with intellectual disabilities serve to promote social engagement and inclusion. However, when the person has limited and idiosyncratic communicative abilities, it may be hard to gauge what his/her own view of the matter is. We examine video-taped records of two episodes in which a staff member of a group home prompted a resident with profound intellectual disabilities to play a verbal and a non-verbal 'game'. We examine how the staff member in these two cases designs her actions to solve the dilemma she faces between, on the one hand, abandoning an activity when the resident does not provide clear indications that she/he wants to continue or, on the other hand, persisting with it until the resident begins to enjoy it or, at least, participate more fully. The solution lies in a pervasive institutional practice: treat resistance or ambiguity as temporary reluctance. We discuss these interactions as examples of how principles of empowerment, inclusion and independence play out in the details of everyday interaction.

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
Sociology of Health and Illness
Additional Information:
The definitive version is available at www.blackwell-synergy.com
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/researchoutput/libraryofcongress/bf
Subjects:
?? INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES • SOCIAL INTERACTION PLAY • EMPOWERMENT • CONVERSATION ANALYSIS • VIDEOHEALTH(SOCIAL SCIENCE)PUBLIC HEALTH, ENVIRONMENTAL AND OCCUPATIONAL HEALTHHEALTH POLICYBF PSYCHOLOGY ??
ID Code:
21095
Deposited By:
Deposited On:
15 Dec 2008 15:16
Refereed?:
Yes
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
19 Sep 2023 00:15