Disability Myths

Myths Around Disability
Myth: disabled people can't make their own decisions - because they might make a mistake!
Fact: everyone should have the right to make decisions for themselves - even wrong ones!

Myth: you have to speak loudly to most disabled people - because they might have difficulty talking!
Fact - people get confused about how to communicate with a person who has a disability. They get the disabilities mixed up!

Myth: disabled people shouldn't be in our community they should be indoors at home.
Fact - more and more people who are disabled are becoming visible - in shopping centre, restaurants, and theatres - enjoying life!

Myth: we have to talk for the disabled - because they aren't capable.

Fact - people who take over for another person really deprive that person of a sense of self worth and dignity

Myth: disabled people don't have feelings like you - their blood is a different colour too!
Fact - people who are disabled think and feel the same as anyone. But the public seems to think they should react to situations differently to how other people do.

Myth - Impairment is an inevitable part of aging
Fact - may people grow old without any significant reduction in their ability to function, particularly if they are supported with good healthcare and nutrition, and they have the opportunity to lead active lives.

Myth - disabled people are 'not like other people' because they look, speak or behave differently
Fact - a person's impairment is only one characteristic. We all have the same needs and rights to family life, social life, participation in society and being valued and respected.

Myth - people with disabilities are ill or infectious
Fact - many people live with impairment, but are healthy or active. It is not possible to 'catch' someone's impairment through contact - this fear is the result of lack of knowledge and misunderstanding.

Myth - older people and disabled people cannot contribute to the household, workplace or community
Fact - older and disabled people have a wide range of skills, knowledge and abilities that can make an important contribution to the family and community. The often merely need the opportunity, encouragement and proper access and support.

Myth - disability is caused by evil spirits or as a punishment for sins
Fact - anyone can become disabled at any time, anywhere. Impairments have a wide range of causes. Whatever our religious or spiritual beliefs, the Universal Declaration on Human Rights is applicable to all human beings, and requires that we respect the dignity of every human being

Myth - older people do not deserve the access to the aids, treatment or rehabilitation services that are available to children or younger adults.
Fact - every human being has inalienable that should be respected, regardless of age, disability or any other characteristic. Moreover, to deny proper healthcare and rehabilitation is likely to make a person's impairment worse and therefore make life more difficult for the person, their family and the community, economically and socially.

Myth - people with disabilities have a poor quality of life
Fact - this is one of the most common and damaging stereotypes, because it discourages social interactions and the development of mature relationships. People with disabilities have needs just like those who are not disabled, and they strive for a high degree of quality of life as other individuals. Society handicaps individuals by building inaccessible schools, theatres, homes, buses etc. the attitude that disability is a bad thing and that disability itself means a poor quality of life is often viewed as more disabling than the disability itself.

Myth - people with disabilities are inspirational, brave, and courageous for living successfully with their disability
Fact - a person with a disability is simply carrying out normal activities of living when they drive to work, go shopping, pay their bills, or compete in athletic events. Access to community based long term service such as attendant care, access to buildings, public transportation, pavements, access to quality healthcare, and necessary equipment enables them to carry on the same as non-disabled people.

Myth - employing disabled people increases workers compensation insurance rates
Fact - insurance rates are based solely on the relative hazards of the operation and the organisations accident history, not on whether workers are disabled.

Myth - employees with disabilities have a higher absentee rate than employees without disabilities.

Fact - studies by firms such as DuPont show that employees without disabilities are not any more absent than employees without disabilities

Myth - considerable expense is necessary to accommodate workers with disabilities
Fact - most workers with disabilities require no special accommodations and the cost for those who do is minimal or much lower than many employers believe.
Myth - disabled people are unable to meet performance standards, thus making them a bad employment risk
Fact - in 1990 DuPont conducted a survey of 811 employees with disabilities and found that 90% rated average or better in job performance compared with 95% for employees without disabilities. A similar 1981 DuPont study which involved 2,745 employees with disabilities found that 92% of employees with disabilities rated average or better in job performance compared with 90% of employees without disabilities. The 1981 study results were comparable to the 1973 study results.

Myth - disability is a devastating personal tragedy
Fact - the lives of disabled people are not tragic. What often disables people is the attitudes that they encounter and the environment and the environment in which they live and work

Myth - most deaf people can lip read
Fact - for clear and efficient communication many deaf people will need services such as sign language interpreters, lip readers, lip speakers and speech to text

Myth - most disabled people are unable to have relationships
Fact - many disabled people, like non-disabled people, make choices about marriage, long-term relationships and having children

Myth - blind people have a sixth sense
Fact - some people use and refine their other senses to compensate.

Myth - wheelchair users are not mobile
Fact - wheelchair users do get out and about. Some usually use wheelchairs, others only when necessary

Myth - there are disabled people who are 'uneducable'
Fact - disabled people reflect the same range of academic ability as non-disabled people, with some achieving high qualifications and undertaking high-level jobs

Myth - equal opportunity means that everyone is treated the same - so students with disabilities should not get any 'special treatment'
Fact - Equal opportunity exists to provide all people with access to achieving their potential. The application of reasonable adjustments addresses barriers to access. It does not provide advantage

Myth - students with disabilities require too much staff time and their needs are inordinately difficult to cater for at university
Fact - students with disabilities, as with other students, want an education with its ensuing benefits. They are often not only experience but motivated at finding solutions and barriers that may appear daunting to others

Myth - students with disabilities create substantial costs through the need to provide extra equipment and academic time
Fact - inclusive policies and practices, such as accessible classrooms or the provision of book reading lists at the start of the semester, create an environment in which the amount of requests for major adjustments are reduced. Many adjustments are simple and low cost, and support personnel, such as note takers, can in some cases assist a student independently of teaching staff

Myth - students with disabilities would be better off studying externally
Fact - all students can find external study isolating, with restricted opportunities for interaction in a stimulating social and intellectual environment. Qualifying students, with or without a disability, should have the choice of studying on or off campus.