The Role and Influence of Family and Community Relations on the Disabled Persons’ Labor Market Status: Perspectives of Disabled Individuals and Family Members

Using a qualitative research approach named "Institutional Ethnography", the current study was conducted in Timiş Country, in order to explore the "lived" experiences of 24 people with disabilities both from cities and countryside regard problematic aspects of disability or community/economic factors likely to influence the disabled person’s status on the labor market. The current study explores the role and influence of family and community relations on the disabled persons’ labor market status. Impact of economic status, housing conditions and access to community services on the opportunity of the disabled person in accessing employment are taken into analysis, too. Transcript analysis reveals several common underlying themes: the role of the family in motivating the disabled person’s educational path, disability and poverty, geographical, cultural and social isolation of disabled individuals and their families, the pervasive impact of housing, community and infrastructure conditions on disabled individuals chances of labor market integration and overall well-being, parent's practical concerns regarding existing services. The purpose of this paper is to report the preliminary findings of this research and to discuss implications for the future in terms of policy development, service planning/ and delivery.



Keywords: disability, family, social inclusion, community services, welfare services