- ableism
- a concept that explains the negative reactions that individuals without a disability have in response to encountering individuals with a disability
- accommodations
- adjustments and modifications in the physical environment to meet the needs of individuals with disabilities
- acquired
- resulting from exposure to a toxin or pathogen such as HIV
- acquired disability
- physical, cognitive, sensory, or psychological impairment that occurs after birth, typically as a result of injury, illness, or environmental factors
- activity level
- one’s ability to perform specific actions
- Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
- initially signed in 1990, protects the rights of individuals with disabilities and prescribes requirements for appropriate accommodations
- autoimmune disorder
- condition that arises from the body’s immune system attacking and damaging its cells and organs
- biopsychosocial model of disability
- focuses on the interplay between medical diagnoses and associated impairments and societal barriers
- chronic disease
- a state of being that includes having a biomedical disease for at least 1 year
- chronic illness
- a condition requiring medical attention or limiting usual daily activities for greater than one year
- cognitive disability
- limitation in cognitive functioning and adaptive behavior stemming from disorders in brain functioning
- communicable disease
- disease passed from person to person
- comorbid medical conditions
- multiple medical conditions are simultaneously present
- congenital
- a condition present at birth
- developmental disability
- condition due to an impairment in learning, language, behavior, or physical function
- disability
- a mental or physical condition that limits an individual’s ability to engage in daily activities in a typical way
- discrimination
- actions or beliefs that show an unjust distinction between people on the grounds of sex, age, ethnicity, or disability
- disease
- a disorder within the body that is identifiable as a medical condition
- external bias
- based on societal attitudes and cultural beliefs but also affects how others treat individuals
- functional impairment
- restriction or difficulty in performing activities effectively due to the loss of functioning in a body part
- functional model of disability
- a cause-and-effect relationship between a physical or cognitive deficit and limitations in daily function
- illness
- the perceived experience of a disorder within the body
- immunodeficiency disorder
- a condition or disease caused by a weakened immune system impairs the body’s ability to fight off disease or infection
- impairment
- loss of one’s physical or mental ability that inhibits usual or expected functioning Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) enacted in 1975, requires that all children with disabilities receive appropriate and free education through the public education system
- intellectual disability
- neurodevelopmental condition characterized by significant limitations in intellectual functioning and adaptive behavior that manifest during the developmental period
- internal bias
- individual thinking pattern that affects how an individual person views and treats others
- medical jargon
- technical medical language
- medical model of disability
- disability as a consequence of a trauma, illness, or congenital health condition that is out of the control of the individual
- moral model of disability
- a long-standing belief pattern that explains disability as a defect in functioning related to the individual’s moral character
- multimorbidity
- co-occurrence of two or more chronic disease states
- overactive immune disorder
- when the immune system develops a hyperresponse to normally harmless environmental substances
- participation level
- often refers to a person’s ability to function in the wider community
- physical disability
- any condition that limits a person's physical functioning or mobility
- prejudice
- when an individual makes a judgment or opinion of a person with a disability before obtaining knowledge of their circumstance
- presbycusis
- age-related hearing loss
- presbyopia
- loss of near vision
- psychiatric disability
- condition characterized by mental health challenges or disorders that significantly affect an individual's cognitive, emotional, or behavioral functioning, leading to difficulties in daily life and social interactions
- recovery
- receiving addiction treatment and remaining drug-free
- rehabilitation
- returning to a previous state of health
- Rehabilitation Act
- legislation that protects individuals against discrimination based on disability at any federally funded facility or any facility receiving federal financial assistance
- rehabilitation model of disability
- conceptualization of disability as a single impairment or a collection of impairments or deficits experienced by an individual that can be improved through rehabilitation
- sensory disability
- limitation related to sensory processing and integration, affecting not only the reception but also the interpretation and response to sensory stimuli, potentially affecting various aspects of daily functioning
- sensory impairment
- any difficulty an individual has with one of their five senses
- social model of disability
- disability in the context of the individual’s physical and social environment
- stereotypic attitude
- fixed, oversimplified, and generalized perception of individuals in a specific demographic group, stemming from internal and external biases
- stigma
- negative or incorrect belief about individuals with disabilities
- structural impairment
- limitation experienced in specific body parts
- underinsured
- lacking adequate health insurance