Disability, Poverty and Welfare Policy: A Critical Disability Theory Analysis of Alberta’s Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped and Implications for Saskatchewan

dc.contributor.advisorSanchez, Miguel
dc.contributor.authorMiazdyck-Shield, Dionne Christine
dc.contributor.committeememberHunter, Garson
dc.contributor.committeememberChalmers, Darlene
dc.contributor.externalexaminerDaschuk, James
dc.date.accessioned2013-03-08T15:31:17Z
dc.date.available2013-03-08T15:31:17Z
dc.date.issued2012-09
dc.descriptionA Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Social Work, University of Regina. vi, 153 p.en_US
dc.description.abstractThroughout modern history, people with disabilities have been socially and economically excluded and subject to intrusive, segregated services. The systemic exclusion of people with disabilities from mainstream society is a product of entrenched discrimination and the devaluing of their lives. The majority of people with disabilities are left with limited options, forcing them to rely on family members, charity and/or state programs to meet their financial and daily living needs. Disability activists have challenged the hegemonic belief that disability is an individual problem, labeling this the ‘individual pathology’ model of disability. They propose an alternative framework, ‘the social model’ which views disability as entirely subjective and societal, rather than a problem within individuals. This thesis examines how the underlying belief that people with disabilities are tragic and flawed, deserving of charity but not equality, may still be a critical factor that influences the construction of social policy, despite the rising popularity of social model thinking. Utilizing choice analysis, this thesis studies the Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) in Alberta. The questions are asked: which model of disability influenced how and why AISH was developed; and has the AISH program evolved with the growing recognition of the social model of disability? The analysis is then used to reflect on the emerging Saskatchewan Assured Income for Disability (SAID) program. The systemic exclusion of disabled people has been de-politicized. Alternatives to the individual pathology model, although known to policy-makers, have been ignored in mainstream policy discourse. (Oliver, 1996; Titchkosky, 2006). If positive change is to happen, the situation of people with disabilities must be re-politicized and their collective experience of exclusion acknowledged and as they define their own needs (Oliver, 1990).en_US
dc.description.authorstatusStudenten
dc.description.peerreviewyesen
dc.identifier.tcnumberTC-SRU-3687
dc.identifier.thesisurlhttp://ourspace.uregina.ca/bitstream/handle/10294/3687/Miazdyck-Shield_Dionne_200209818_MSW_Spring_2013.pdf
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10294/3687
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherFaculty of Graduate Studies and Research, University of Reginaen_US
dc.subject.lcshPeople with disabilities--Alberta--Finance, Personal
dc.subject.lcshGuaranteed annual income--Alberta
dc.subject.lcshSupplemental security income program--Alberta
dc.subject.lcshEconomic assistance, Domestic--Alberta
dc.subject.lcshSaskatchewan Assured Income for Disability (Program)
dc.subject.lcshAssured Income for the Severely Handicapped (Program: Alta.)
dc.titleDisability, Poverty and Welfare Policy: A Critical Disability Theory Analysis of Alberta’s Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped and Implications for Saskatchewanen_US
dc.typemaster thesisen
thesis.degree.departmentFaculty of Social Worken_US
thesis.degree.disciplineSocial Worken_US
thesis.degree.grantorFaculty of Graduate Studies and Research, University of Reginaen
thesis.degree.levelMaster'sen
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Social Work (MSW)en_US

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