Social integration of the physically disabled in Barbados

An emergent concern with the rehabilitation and social integration of disabled people in developing nations has created a need to identify cultural beliefs and behaviors which may affect the integration of the disabled into normative social roles. The focus of this study is the social integration of physically disabled adults among the nonelite, colored population of Barbados, West Indies. This paper analyses the role participation of 30 physically disabled adults within the context of Barbadian beliefs and behaviors related to the disabled and to the 'normal' adult. Although village Barbadians do not expect the physically disabled to fulfill normative adult roles, some disabled individuals in this study do perform adult activities, such as maintaining employment and engaging in sexual relationships. However, very few of them participate in the reciprocal relationships among peers and neighbors through which village Barbadians achieve status and 'respect' as adults.