Setting Free the Captives: The Power of Community Integration in Liberating Institutionalized Adults from the Bonds of Their past

Abstract

This article demonstrates the power that integration can have in bringing out the positive potential within people with handicaps and in positively altering stereotypes and expectancies of staff. The experiences of nine people who had the opportunity to leave their institutional environment for a week-long vacation are described herein. During these vacations, all of which were in popular vacation spots in New York State, dramatic behavior changes were witnessed in the men and women from the institution. Staff were transformed as well: Their expectations and perceptions changed markedly. It became clear that a person's behavior and demonstrated abilities in an institutional setting cannot be used to predict his or her readiness for, or behavior in, a typical community setting. Other lessons which can be learned from community integrative experiences are included in these nine vignettes.