The Encyclopedia of Disability is an award-winning five-volume set from SAGE Reference, awarded Best Reference 2005 award from the Library Journal along with an Outstanding Award from the American Library Association's Booklist journal. It represents the first attempt to bring an authoritative reference resource to the many faces of disability.
Addressing disability not as a form of student impairment--as it is typically perceived at the postsecondary level--but rather as an important dimension of student diversity and identity, this book explores how disability can be more effectively incorporated into college environments. Chapters propose new perspectives, empirical research, and case studies to provide the necessary foundation for understanding the role of disability within campus climate and integrating students with disabilities into academic and social settings.
This book provides a global and social examination of how disabilities are played out and experienced around the world. It presents auto-ethnographic perspectives on disability across cultures, societies, and countries by documenting individuals' personal narratives, thought processes and reflections.
This is the first book of its kind to feature interdisciplinary art history and disability studies scholarship. Art historians have traditionally written about images of figures with impairments and artworks by disabled artists, without integrating disability studies scholarship, while many disability studies scholars discuss works of art, but do not necessarily incorporate art historical research and methodology.
Disability studies emphasizes respectful, inclusive language. Many scholars advocate for identity-first language (e.g., “disabled person”) to acknowledge disability as an integral part of identity, though some communities prefer person-first language (e.g., “person with a disability”). Pay attention to how authors describe disability, and when in doubt, follow the terminology used by the people or communities being discussed.
This section highlights foundational and influential works in Disability Studies, spanning theory, cultural analysis, policy, activism, and personal narratives. These are just a select number of texts and resources in the field. It is not comprehensive, but provides a starting point for exploration and research. Users are encouraged to consult library databases and catalogs for additional materials.
The Disability Studies Reader – Edited by Lennard J. Davis
A key anthology that brings together classic and contemporary scholarship in Disability Studies. Covers social, cultural, and political approaches.
Handbook of Disability Studies- Albrecht, Gary L.; Bury, Michael, 1945-; Seelman, Katherine D.
A foundational collection of interdisciplinary essays.
Enabling Acts: The Hidden Story of How the Americans with Disabilities Act Gave the Largest US Minority Its Rights– Lennard J. Davis
Explores the development and impact of the ADA within social and legal contexts.
Nothing About Us Without Us: Disability Oppression and Empowerment – James I. Charlton
Foundational for understanding the disability rights movement and the principle of self-advocacy.
The Body in Pain: The Making and Unmaking of the World – Elaine Scarry
While not exclusively about disability, it is frequently cited in discussions of embodiment and bodily experience.
Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist – Judith Heumann
Memoir by one of the most important disability rights activists, central to U.S. history of disability advocacy.
Crip Theory: Cultural Signs of Queerness and Disability – Robert McRuer
Connects disability studies and queer theory, exploring culture, identity, and politics.
Care Work: Dreaming Disability Justice – Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha
A contemporary intersectional approach emphasizing disability justice, care, and activism.
Disability Rights and Wrongs and Disability Rights and Wrongs, Revisited – Tom Shakespeare
Introduces social, medical, and human rights models of disability. Accessible and widely cited in policy-focused discussions.
Extraordinary Bodies: Figuring Physical Disability in American Culture and Literature – Rosemarie Garland-Thomson
Examines literary and cultural representations of disability.
Freakery: Cultural Spectacles of the Extraordinary Body – Edited by Rosemarie Garland-Thomson
An anthology on the historical and cultural construction of the “freak” body.
Feminist, Queer, Crip - Alison Kafer:
A critical text that delves into the intersection of feminist theory, queer theory, and disability studies. Kafer challenges ableist assumptions within these fields and introduces the concept of "crip time," which refers to the non-linear way disabled people experience time.