The Other-Order Abuse Model
Alexander Kwesi Kassah1* and Bente Lilljan Lind Kassah2
1 Department of Disability Nursing, Uit. The Arctic University of Norway, Norway
2Department of Health and Care Sciences, Uit. The Arctic University of Norway, Norway
Submission: June 22, 2018; Published: July 09, 2018
*Corresponding author: Alexander Kwesi Kassah, Institute of Social Education, UiT. The Norwegian Arctic University, Norway. Tel: +4793226772, Email: kwesi.a.kassah@uit.no
How to cite this article: Kassah AK, Kassah BLL. The Other-Order Abuse Model. Glob J Intellect Dev Disabil. 2018; 4(5): 555646. DOI: 10.19080/GJIDD.2018.04.555646
Abstract
The opinion paper is to present an alternative model that may promote the understanding of the practice of different forms of abuse faced by people with disabilities. While there are some attempts to provide explanations to human rights abuse, there is still the need to develop models that can throw light on the persistence of the practice in traditional societies. We expect that an explanatory model, based on the conceptualizations of social other and social order may enhance analysis and discussions of abuse of disabled people.
Introduction
People with disabilities face various forms of abuse in many societies [1]. However, few works including those of Westcott[2], Sobsey[3], Fitzsimons[4] and Olsvik [5] do not adequately promote the understanding of abuse of people with disabilities in traditional societies. We propose the ‘Other - Order Abuse model’, based on the works of Becker [6], Goffman[7], Hechter &Horne [8] among others, as an alternative to existing models of abuse(Figure 1).
The ‘Other – Order’ Abuse model
The thesis of the model is that, when some members of society define a member with disabilities as the ‘other’, they do all they can to subject the ‘other’ to the rules of social order or face sanctions. The members of society try to follow the internalised rules of social order, the norms on how to deal with the ‘other’ in society. Often, members of society, depending on the dependency, visibility and the extensiveness of the norms [9] may feel propelled to normalise, stigmatise, devalue or discriminate against the other. The execution of abuse may become the inevitable consequence. Due to space, we will draw only on the model’s potential to explain capital abuse of disabled people in traditional societies. In this context, in traditional societies, the person with disabilities often acquire the ‘other’ label, and the dependent, visible and extensive norm is that the disabled person should face death or return to the lands of his ancestors [1]. Even though the legal norms may prohibit capital abuse, the other –order processes that result in normalising, stigmatising, devaluing and discriminating may promote and legitimise the execution of capital abuse.
Summary and conclusion
This paper seeks to present another model that can increase our understandings of various forms of abuse of people with disabilities by non-disabled members of society. When members of traditional societies classify people with disabilities as the other, the ordered ways of treating them may include abuse. The model is particularly important for application regarding capital abuse of disabled children in traditional societies. Other useful models including the dependency-stress model, the disability abuse model and the integrated ecological model [5] provide some understanding of violations of the rights of disabled people. However, the order-other abuse model is an important supplement.
References
- Kassah AK, Kassah BLL, Agbota TK (2012) Abuse of Disabled Children in Ghana. Disability & Society 27(5): 689-701
- Westcott H (1993) Abuse of children and adults with learning disabilities. NSPCC, London
- Sobsey D (1994) Violence and abuse in the lives of people with disabilities: The end of silent acceptance? Brookes, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Olsvik VM (2006) Vulnerable, Exposed and Invisible: A Study of Violence and Abuse against Women with Physical Disabilities. Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research 8 (2-3): 85-98.
- Fitzsimons NM (2009) Combating Violence & Abuse of People with Disabilities: A call for action. Brookes, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
- Becker HS (1963) Outsiders: Studies in the Sociology of Deviance. The Free Press, New York, USA.
- Goffman E (1963) Stigma: Notes on the Management of Spoiled Identity. New Jersey: Penguin Books.
- Hechter M, Horne C (eds.) (2003) Theories of Social Order: A Reader. Palo Alto, Standford, USA.
- Stark R (2007) Sociology (10th Edn). Florence, Cengage Learning Inc, USA.