title: 'Cripping' care in disability sport: an autoethnographic study of a highly impaired high-performance athlete

authors: Lowry, Amanda

subjects: Social Sciences

abstract: In this article we combine the fields of critical disability studies and the sociology of sport to disrupt and extend current understandings of athlete welfare and care. A focus on athlete welfare is producing heightened awareness of the need for institutional, structural and personal support for athletes. Notions of ‘care’ are proliferating in sport discourse, with sport organisations routinely described as having a ‘duty of care’ towards athletes. In high performance disability sport, however, the provision and arrangement of care is often based on a view of the disabled athlete as high functioning, autonomous and independent. This perspective is further complicated when considering the provision of care for people with high support needs. Drawing on cripistemology, we argue that a politics of knowledge confirms a certain squeamishness around care practices and care knowledge in disability sport. One of us – a high performance, highly impaired athlete in Aotearoa New Zealand, offers an autoethnographic account of her experiences of training and competing, illustrating the embodied and intimate care needed for her continued engagement in high performance sporting practices. In keeping with wider calls in critical disability studies to bring the study of the body and therefore impairment back into disability discourse, we offer this personal narrative to ‘crip’ care knowledge, focusing on the materiality of bodies as they intersect with sport. Finally, we argue that sport scholars, practitioners and governing bodies must consider the embodied care politics of disabled athletes in order to deepen understandings of impairment, inequalities, and social inclusion.

text: 'Cripping' care in disability sport: an autoethnographic study of a highly impaired high-performance athlete In this article we combine the fields of critical disability studies and the sociology of sport to disrupt and extend current understandings of athlete welfare and care. A focus on athlete welfare is producing heightened awareness of the need for institutional, structural and personal support for athletes. Notions of ‘care’ are proliferating in sport discourse, with sport organisations routinely described as having a ‘duty of care’ towards athletes. In high performance disability sport, however, the provision and arrangement of care is often based on a view of the disabled athlete as high functioning, autonomous and independent. This perspective is further complicated when considering the provision of care for people with high support needs. Drawing on cripistemology, we argue that a politics of knowledge confirms a certain squeamishness around care practices and care knowledge in disability sport. One of us – a high performance, highly impaired athlete in Aotearoa New Zealand, offers an autoethnographic account of her experiences of training and competing, illustrating the embodied and intimate care needed for her continued engagement in high performance sporting practices. In keeping with wider calls in critical disability studies to bring the study of the body and therefore impairment back into disability discourse, we offer this personal narrative to ‘crip’ care knowledge, focusing on the materiality of bodies as they intersect with sport. Finally, we argue that sport scholars, practitioners and governing bodies must consider the embodied care politics of disabled athletes in order to deepen understandings of impairment, inequalities, and social inclusion.

year: 2022-02-18

title: Factors Affecting Caregiver Outcomes

authors: Calder, Nicole

subjects: caregiver

abstract: Research in the area of caregiving has tended to focus on the impact of the caregiving experience itself without consideration of continued psychological distress for caregivers after institutionalisation or death. Seven caregivers of loved ones with Alzheimer's Dementia (mostly spousal) were interviewed about their experiences of caregiving and their emotional well-being after placement of their loved one into a residential care facility or death. The  nature of the carers relationship with their loved one (e.g.  highly dependent), lack of social supports, inactivity and a poor experience of transition into care seemed to be factors relating to poorer outcomes for these caregivers. Utilisation of social supports, involvement in pleasant events, adequate preparation and information relating to the disease and collaboratively planned transition into care played protective roles for the remaining carers who reported decreased levels of anxiety, guilt, depression and stress post-institutionalisation/death. The implications of the current research for practise, policy change and prevention are extensive and suggest that risk factors may be identifiable and thus poorer mental health outcomes in caregivers preventable. A need for greater support to be made available to caregivers is necessary.

text: Factors Affecting Caregiver Outcomes Research in the area of caregiving has tended to focus on the impact of the caregiving experience itself without consideration of continued psychological distress for caregivers after institutionalisation or death. Seven caregivers of loved ones with Alzheimer's Dementia (mostly spousal) were interviewed about their experiences of caregiving and their emotional well-being after placement of their loved one into a residential care facility or death. The  nature of the carers relationship with their loved one (e.g.  highly dependent), lack of social supports, inactivity and a poor experience of transition into care seemed to be factors relating to poorer outcomes for these caregivers. Utilisation of social supports, involvement in pleasant events, adequate preparation and information relating to the disease and collaboratively planned transition into care played protective roles for the remaining carers who reported decreased levels of anxiety, guilt, depression and stress post-institutionalisation/death. The implications of the current research for practise, policy change and prevention are extensive and suggest that risk factors may be identifiable and thus poorer mental health outcomes in caregivers preventable. A need for greater support to be made available to caregivers is necessary.

year: 2008

title: Factors of desistance in violent offenders: Interpretative phenomenological analysis of the Tai Aroha programme

authors: Beattie, Christopher James

subjects: Desistance

abstract: The phenomenon of desistance from crime is central to the process of rehabilitation. This study examines desistance narratives from the Tai Aroha programme to identify the aspects of participation in a community-based special treatment unit that are effective from the perspective of participants. A review of desistance literature is presented in a New Zealand context. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to present common themes in 64 exit interviews of individuals who completed this programme over a period of 6 years. These themes were compared to the factors of desistance identified in the literature review. The three key concepts that emerged from this study as factors of desistance evident in the Tai Aroha programme were the Morphic Self, Family and Whanau, and Mindfulness. The concept of the Morphic Self is a perspective on the process of identity change as experienced by participants, and is a key product of this research. Three other factors were identified as prerequisites for successful completion of the programme that also therefore contribute to desistance: Motivation, Sobriety, and Peers and Support. Also identified from this research were aspects of the experience termed Elements of Influence, which are the facets of the participants, the programme and the interactions between the two that can be considered in order to improve the delivery of the programme and therefore promote desistance. A distinctive quality of the Tai Aroha programme that was influential in the successful promotion of desistance was its strong commitment to tikanga Māori and the incorporation of these cultural values into the lifestyle and therapeutic approaches adopted by the facilitators.

text: Factors of desistance in violent offenders: Interpretative phenomenological analysis of the Tai Aroha programme The phenomenon of desistance from crime is central to the process of rehabilitation. This study examines desistance narratives from the Tai Aroha programme to identify the aspects of participation in a community-based special treatment unit that are effective from the perspective of participants. A review of desistance literature is presented in a New Zealand context. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to present common themes in 64 exit interviews of individuals who completed this programme over a period of 6 years. These themes were compared to the factors of desistance identified in the literature review. The three key concepts that emerged from this study as factors of desistance evident in the Tai Aroha programme were the Morphic Self, Family and Whanau, and Mindfulness. The concept of the Morphic Self is a perspective on the process of identity change as experienced by participants, and is a key product of this research. Three other factors were identified as prerequisites for successful completion of the programme that also therefore contribute to desistance: Motivation, Sobriety, and Peers and Support. Also identified from this research were aspects of the experience termed Elements of Influence, which are the facets of the participants, the programme and the interactions between the two that can be considered in order to improve the delivery of the programme and therefore promote desistance. A distinctive quality of the Tai Aroha programme that was influential in the successful promotion of desistance was its strong commitment to tikanga Māori and the incorporation of these cultural values into the lifestyle and therapeutic approaches adopted by the facilitators.

year: 2018