Ableism: the causes and consequence of disability prejudice

Foreword / Dan Perlman -- Introduction: Defining ableism -- The evolutionary and existential origins of ableism -- Justifying ableism: Ideologies and language -- Cultural and impairment-specific stereotypes -- Hostile, ambivalent, and paternalistic attitudes and interactions -- Contending with ableism from internalized ableism to collective action / co-author, Arielle Silverman -- Interventions to reduce prejudice -- Beyond contact: Promoting social change and disability justice -- Appendix: Summary of future research questions.

"Ableism, prejudice against disabled people stereotyped as incompetent and dependent, can elicit a range of reactions that include fear, contempt, pity, and inspiration. Current literature--often narrowly focused on a specific aspect of the subject or limited in scope to psychoanalytic tradition--fails to examine the many origins and manifestations of ableism. Filling a significant gap in the field, Ableism: The Causes and Consequences of Disability Prejudice is the first work to synthesize classic and contemporary studies on the evolutionary, ideological, and cognitive-emotional sources of ableism. This comprehensive volume examines new manifestations of ableism, summarizes the state of research on disability prejudice, and explores real-world personal accounts and interventions to illustrate the various forms and impacts of ableism. This important contribution to the field combines evidence from multiple theoretical perspectives, including published and unpublished work from both disabled and nondisabled constituents, on the causes, consequences, and elimination of disability prejudice. Each chapter places findings in the context of contemporary theories--identifying methodological limits and suggesting alternative interpretations. Topics include the evolutionary and existential origins of disability prejudice, cultural and impairment-specific stereotypes, interventions to reduce prejudice, and how to effect social change through collective action and advocacy."--Provided by publisher.

Includes bibliographical references and index.