ENGL 121: Composition I, Procopio Ross

Language and terminology are crucial when talking about disabilities. Use the resources on this page to help you select the appropriate terms to use in your writing assignments.

"Person-first" language intends to shift the focus away from the "impairment" and towards the barriers imposed by society on people with disabilities--positioning those barriers as the problem, rather than the person with a disability. This approach was introduced in the late 1980s and was considered the acceptable approach for many years. However, some communities and activists feel this language treats disability as inherently negative.

"Identity-first" language treats disability as a diverse cultural experience and as an essential part of a person's identity. Identity-first language is used as a sign of pride by some communities, such as the Deaf community, which celebrates the unique culture developed by Deaf and hard-of-hearing people. In identity-first language, disability is treated similarly to identifiers such as race, gender identity, or sexual orientation. However, this approach may not be appropriate for all types of disabilities. People with conditions like epilepsy, for example, shouldn't be referred to as "epileptics."

Choosing to use person-first or identity-first language depends on the context and communities you are talking about. Pay attention to how people refer to themselves or (whenever possible) ask them what they prefer.

This blog post from the University of Kansas' School of Education discusses this topic in further detail.

Accessibility, Inclusion, and Usability are closely related concepts. Here's an overview of what each term means:

Accessibility: accessibility means that people with disabilities can equally perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with something. It also means that they can contribute equally to a community without barriers.

Inclusion: is about diversity and ensuring involvement of everyone to the greatest extent possible. Environments that are inclusive celebrate the contributions of all people, including people with disabilities.They make efforts to include people who have historically been excluded or marginalized.

Usability: is about designing products and environments that are effective, efficient, and satisfying. This may include general aspects that impact everyone and do not disproportionally impact people with disabilities. Usability practice and research alone often does not sufficiently address the needs of people with disabilities.

These definitions are adapted (with minor additions) from W3C's Web Accessibility Initiative.