Skip to Main Content
Research Guides

Disability Studies

Disability Studies:  About this Guide

 

Welcome to the Disability Studies Library Research Guide!

This guide is designed as a jumping-off point for your research in the field of disability studies. The purpose is not to be provided an exhaustive list of all related resources but rather to cover key resources in the library. 

Guide Navigation

Use the menu on the side of this guide to navigate to the different sections.

What is Disability Studies?

Critical Disability Studies is an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary field that approaches disability as a social and cultural category, a lived experience, and an analytical frame. It thus expands understandings of disability and people with disabilities across diverse geographical and temporal contexts. According to the Encyclopedia of American Disability History, "disability is not a characteristic that exists in the person so defined, but a construct that finds its meaning in a social and cultural context.” Critical Disability Studies explores issues of identity, representation, access, citizenship, technology, knowledge, and power—among other topics—and understands disability as inextricably tied to other social forces and identities, including gender, sexuality, class, and race.

Best Bets for Starting Research in Disability Studies