DISABILITY, REPRESENTATION AND TRANSLATION: HOW CAN SOCIOLOGY MOVE BEYOND THE SOCIAL MODEL?
DISABILITY, REPRESENTATION AND TRANSLATION: HOW CAN SOCIOLOGY MOVE BEYOND THE SOCIAL MODEL?

Summary/Abstract: The aim of this article is to propose a new conceptual tool and an inspiration for sociological analysis of disability as an alternative to the predominant social model. It first discusses the social model and argues that in spite of its numerous merits it may be regarded as a manifestation of sociological reductionism of the actual complexity of disability. The notions of representation and translation are then contrasted, the former being the core of the social constructionist accounts and the latter being deeply rooted in a post‑constructivist perspectiveof actor‑network theory. Next, examples of translation, related to data visualization, disability simulation technologies and disability certification schemas are presented and discussed, emphasizing the action possibilities they enable by this impacting both the situation of people with disabilities and policy‑making processes. Finally, it is argued that sociology could engage in not only the examination but also the development of translational tools, which could be an important and welcome contribution of the discipline to disability policies.

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