Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to describe attitudes that able-bodied people have towards clergy with mobility impairments. Participants consented to a photo elicitation study in which they were shown a photograph of a male clergy person and of a female clergy person, both in full vestments and sitting in wheelchairs in front of an altar. The results demonstrated that able-bodied parishioners’ attitudes toward clergy with impairments are complex, but generally supportive. These findings highlight the concept of disability as a sociocultural construction.
Author(s): James R. Brennan & Debra Rutledge
Journal: Religion, Disability and Health
Date: 2013
Volume: 17
Issue: 2
Pages: 77-90
DOI: 10.1080/15228967.2013.780829
Databased: Yes
Disabilities: Physical Disabilities
Categories: Clergy/Theology