From mid-April to mid-July in 1998,
I will go to Canada (a half month) and the U.S. (2 1/2 months) for studying,
supported by a Shimizu Foundation overseas study grant.
My plan is to study how to teach people with severe developmental disabilities to be self-advocates.
I'd like to tell you about my motivation for this overseas study,
so that you can understand my opinions well.



I've been working in the world of welfare for people with
developmental disabilities for 13 years.
Several years ago, we learned that residential institutions for people with disabilities were becoming smaller and being closed,
and that people with disabilities in Europe and America were moving from institutions to the community to live.
We really wanted to confirm that it was possible for people with
severe developmental disabilities and behavior problems
to work and live in the community.




So in 1995 and 1996, I participated in the two study tours of American social welfare services that I mentioned above.
On these tours, I could actually see people with
severe developmental disabilities living in group homes and apartment houses and enjoying their community life in the U.S.
And I could meet many people with severe developmental disabilities who were able to hold regular jobs in competitive employment
because of having the support of job coaches who were provided
through a program called supported employment.
I also heard that in the U.S., people with severe developmental disabilities used to have many behavior problems,
but recently these have almost disappeared.


After the study tours, I thought about
why these problems were now so rare in the U.S.
Here are some of the reasons that I considered:


(a) People with developmental disabilities are now living with only one or two other persons.

(b) Staff always respect the self-determination of people with developmental disabilities.

(c) People with developmental disabilities now receive special training, for example, people who can't speak or have severe disabilities are trained using picture cards and photo cards. Another kind of training is image-training for self-control of frustration.


According to the social welfare services providers in the U.S. that I talked with, they train people with severe disabilities once or twice a week, on a one-to-one basis.





At present, many residents of institutions for people with severe developmental disabilities in Japan have various behavioral problems, such as hyperactivity and excitability, self-injury, and aggression and violence. Some residents are
extremely attached to specific things (for example,water, or a string).


There are several such people in our workshop, too.

For example,

Mr. A often runs away from his work site, either to some other place in the building or else out of the building. And sometimes he throws stones at the building or the staff. Moreover, he sometimes hits the windows hard with his hand.


Mr. B holds water in his mouth and then spits it out, getting his shirt wet.
So he has to change his clothes about five times a day.


Mr. C pulls hard on the hair of any staff near him when he becomes irritated because he can't do what he wants to do or has to do what he doesn't want to do.



However, I think that these behavioral problems
would decrease if these people could express their
own feelings and their will, and if what they said
was accepted by other people.


The behavioral problems described above are
problems for those of us who support people with
developmental disabilities. I think that these
behaviors are a way for people who can't tell others
their own feeling and will very well, to get across
their will or express pain.



Therefore, I think that the important thing is that
we should not define the behavior itself as the
problem. Rather, people who are supporting those
with severe developmental disabilities should do
their best to understand what they are trying to
express and to assist them to get what they want.



In Japan, we always talk about "self-choice and self-
determination by people with disabilities" or
"participation by people with disabilities
themselves". But I think that in practice, the only
people with disabilities who have self-choice and
self-determination in Japan are those with mild
disabilities who can express their feelings by their
words and actions. I think that the reason that
people with more severe disabilities do not have
self-choice and self-determination is because we on
the staff don't acquire the techniques necessary to
draw out their will.




That is why I want to learn how to train people with
severe disabilities in self-choice and self-
determination.


Also, I will be very glad if what I learn will be
useful for many social welfare staff in Japan who
worry every day because they can't find a way to
treat people with severe developmental disabilities.
If we staff who deal with people with severe
developmental disabilities on a daily basis can
understand their will and accept their self-advocacy,
we can prove to more people that people with
severe disabilities, like the rest of us, have their
own individual will.






Moreover as more people become convinced of this
view, that will create a society that respects the
human rights and the will of the people with severe
developmental disabilities.




Please write us at the e-mail address below if you have any comments on these issues.




Thank you for accessing
this home page.