Promoting safety awareness and protection skills for people with disabilities: a literature review

Abstract

Purpose High prevalence of violence against persons with disabilities (PwDs) has prompted a steady growth of training aimed at equipping PwDs with personal safety skills. This paper aims to examine the efficacy of safety trainings for PwDs. Design/methodology/approach A search of relevant electronic databases was conducted to shortlist peer-reviewed literature on empirically evaluated safety trainings for PwDs, between January 2010 and August 2020 with the defined inclusion criteria. Findings Six safety programmes were reviewed. Data analysis revealed key themes related to programme modifications for accessibility; fit of intervention to disability type; PwDs’ learning needs; and the context of disability abuse in designing intervention pathways. Originality/value PwDs can benefit from and contribute to safety training, if programmes are adequately modified to support their learning and participation. Future studies can target disability abuse by known persons; different disability groups; and generate longitudinal data to strengthen validity of programme efficacy.