Using Labels: A Study of Client Preference

Abstract

Fifty-one adolescents and adults with a variety of visual impairments were interviewed to determine their preference for different labels used to describe them. Participants were asked to choose among labels that state the disability before the person (“the visually handicapped person”) and labels that state the person before the disability (“the person with a visual impairment”). Results showed no statistically significant preference. Reasons provided by participants for their preference were characterized and presented thematically. The importance of stressing abilities and needs to be treated as normal were the most common reasons given by the participants for their selections. Participants who chose the person-first labels cited these reasons more often than those who chose the disability-first labels.