My current research initiatives focus on the everyday life information practices of young adults with developmental disabilities.

Background
Access to meaningful information, with particular reference to everyday life information, can have an incredible and life changing impact in the lives of individuals with developmental disabilities. The Developmental Disabilities Act and Bill of Rights (2000) emphasizes the need and importance of information stating “the goals of the Nation properly include a goal of providing individuals with developmental disabilities with the information, skills, opportunities, and support to:

make informed choices and decisions about their lives; live in homes and communities in which such individuals can exercise their full rights and responsibilities as citizens; pursue meaningful and productive lives; contribute to their families, communities, and States, and the Nation; have interdependent friendships and relationships with other persons; live free of abuse, neglect, financial and sexual exploitation, and violations of their legal and human rights; and achieve full integration and inclusion in society, in an individualized manner, consistent with the unique strengths, resources, priorities, concerns, abilities, and capabilities of each individual.

In searching the literature for both scholarly research and practitioner focused articles addressing both the information needs of and library and information resources for individuals with developmental disabilities, very little can be found. This is in stark contrast to the large amount of literature drawing attention to the information resources and needs of individuals with physical and sensory disabilities. Norlin (1995) noted this disparity and commented “it is not surprising that there has been no real attempt to discover their information needs” attributing this neglect to limited interaction with and understanding of individuals with developmental disabilities as well as erroneous assumptions of their information needs. Such assumptions are that individuals with intellectual disabilities do not have information needs, are unable to successfully use available information, have the same information needs as the general public, or their information needs are too costly to address. In depth exploration is warranted for a number of reasons: 

draws much needed attention to and contributes to the scholarly discourse of this marginalize and misrepresented population, their information needs, and the role information plays in the development of self-determination and life control;

contributes to the potential for improved instruction, care, and design of information communication technologies. Wilson (1981) notes "an orientation towards the user in the true sense...must result in a great humility about the potential value of traditional information practices and a greater willingness to innovate and experiment";

contributes to the potential for increased self-empowerment, self-determination, enhanced quality of life, and gives voice to a disempowered and marginalized group;

and finally as Schalock (1996) notes, focus on self-empowerment, increased self-determination, and quality of life contribute to the “betterment of society as a whole".

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The following questions guide the research:

What are the everyday life information needs of teens with developmental disabilities?

Who and/or what stimulates an information need? (Self-initiated, parent/caregiver, teacher)

By what means (tools/resources/people) do teens with developmental disabilities seek to address their everyday life information needs?

What criteria is determined to reject or accept information sources or share information with other people in life world contexts?

What barriers do individuals with developmental disabilities encounter when identifying an information need and accessing, evaluating, and utilizing the information?

What types of everyday life information do parents/caregivers and teachers perceive their child/student as having?

How do/can special education programs, school libraries, public libraries, and web technologies address and support the everyday information needs of teens with developmental disabilities?