Differing Perspectives of Stigma from Students with Disabilities and Access Workers

Abstract

Students with disabilities in post-secondary education have experiences of stigma that can prevent them from disclosing disabilities or using academic accommodations. Without disclosure, these students lose access to academic accommodations that can better enable their success. Access workers at post-secondary institutions are mindful of the barriers that stigma can produce and often work to reduce it. However, access workers and students with disabilities may have different understandings of stigma, including the most prevalent and concerning sources of stigma for students and the particular consequences that stigmatization provokes. I work to explain and understand these differences as consequences of varying discourses on stigma and theorize the impact of these discourses on disabled college students.