Routledge Dis/ability Studies: Theorising disablism and ableism

In this ground-breaking new work, Dan Goodley makes the case for a novel, distinct, intellectual, and political project – dis/ability studies – an orientation that might encourage us to think again about the phenomena of disability and ability. Drawing on a range of interdisciplinary areas, including sociology, psychology, education, policy and cultural studies, this much needed text takes the most topical and important issues in critical disability theory, and pushes them into new theoretical territory. Goodley argues that we are entering a time of dis/ability studies, when both categories of disability and ability require expanding upon as a response to the global politics of neoliberal capitalism. Divided into two parts, the first section traces the dual processes of ableism and disablism, suggesting that one cannot exist without the other, and makes the case for a research-driven and intersectional analysis of dis/ability. The second section applies this new analytical framework to a range of critical topics, including: The biopolitics of dis/ability and debility Inclusive education Psychopathology Markets, communities and civil society. Dis/ability Studies provides much needed depth, texture and analysis in this emerging discipline. This accessible text will appeal to students and researchers of disability across a range of disciplines, as well as disability activists, policymakers, and practitioners working directly with disabled people. Review “Dis/Ability Studies: Theorizing Disableism and Ableism, is a compelling text in which readers are invited to engage with, build upon, and weave together important theoretical contributions made by activist scholars in disableism, ableism, queer theory, crip theory, and poststructural and postconventional disability studies research. Goodley himself does much of the weaving for us as he illustrates, rather masterfully I think, how multiple theoretical perspectives might be brought together and expanded in order to open new spaces for theorizing how we might disrupt the intractable nature of ableism and disableism and their entrenched capacity to shape modern neoliberal responses to disability.” - Cynthia Bruce, PhD(C) Part-Time Faculty, Education, Acadia University, Canadian Journal of Disability Studies 'Dis/Ability Studies brings together a dizzying array of new theoretical concepts, tools and lenses with which to activate a dis/ability imagination. What makes Dis/Ability Studies an exciting read is the incredible volume of theory and empirical research that Goodley reviews, synthesis, dissects and analyses.' - Imogen Tyler, Disability and Society, April 2015 'The author's thesis is that disability and ability are both worthy of study and they cannot be separated. The messy bits between this binary is what complicates the current state of disability studies, and is really the heart of the entire book ... Particularly enjoyable is his suggestion that so-called "normals" need therapy to combat the psychopathology of ableism ... Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above.' - P.A. Murphy, University of Toledo, in CHOICE, December 2014 ‘Dis/ability Studies proposes a new dialectic in which the twins disability and ability – separated at birth – are re-united in a confrontation whereby the alienated siblings come to terms with their distinctive experiences; one, comfortable in the lap of privilege; the other, mired, deep down amongst the wretched of the earth. Professor Goodley breaks new ground and re-sets the template for the disability debate.’ – Professor Bill Hughes, Glasgow School for Business and Society, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK. ‘"Dis/ability studies" is a remarkable synthesis of the most distinctive strands of Goodley’s thought, and yet, expands current scholarly thinking. Goodley offers a clear signal for a change of direction, if not a revolution, in disability thought.’ – Dr Kar