What is disability?

Question

What is disability?

Answer 1

Anything that interferes with a persons ability to learn, work or care for themselves. It can be medical or mental.

Answer 2

There is no one answer to this question.  There are social definitions of disability, which we just all make up.  The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, Rehabilitation Act, Social Security and others all have different definitions of disability.  You may be disabled as a student in school, but not as an adult in the workforce or vice versa.  So, it really depends on what makes you ask the question.

Answer 3

A disability is a condition, disorder, or physical problem that causes a person to have to adapt to their surroundings.

A physical disability could be an amputation or blindness.

A mental disability could be Down's syndrome.

A social disability could be alcoholism that is uncontrolled.

Hope that helps!

Answer 4

A problem which should be situated in society rather than in the person themselves.  People are not so much disabled by the impairments that they might have, but by the fact that society doesn't compensate for them.  e.g. high steps to get into shops mean that electric wheelchair users who may be very active and independent are unable to get in.  Society needs to adapt so that these people are included.

Answer 5

1. lack of adequate power, strength, or physical or mental ability; incapacity.  

2. a physical or mental handicap, esp. one that prevents a person from living a full, normal life or from holding a gainful job.  

3. anything that disables or puts one at a disadvantage: His mere six-foot height will be a disability in professional basketball.  

4. the state or condition of being disabled.  

5. legal incapacity; legal disqualification.  

6. disability insurance.

Answer 6

A disability doesn’t just mean that a person is unable, disability can mean that a child is over able. Also a child that has a disabiltiy may not always have that, as a disabiltiy can also be a child who has had loss of one of their senses. This can be temporary or permanent. Just because a child has disabiltiy doesn’t mean they can't do something, they just may do it in a different was or take a little longer, or maybe quicker. Also disabiltiys can be inherited from a parent such as a lisp. This can be passed on through families but also help is available from speech therapists.