Teaching persons with intellectual disabilities and limited receptive and expressive communication how to recognize and assert their human rights

Persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) are far more likely to be abused than the general population, but there is little research on teaching people with ID about their rights. The goal of this study was to teach four participants with ID and limited communication abilities about their human rights by training them on specific rights topics. The training program included icebreaker activities, instruction on rights concepts, watching and answering questions about videotaped scenarios of rights restrictions, watching and answering questions about role pl ay scenarios of rights restrictions, and responding to brief, low risk in situ rights restrictions imposed by the researchers. Participant performance did not improve significantly or consistently from baseline to training on the questions asked about the videotaped or the role play scenarios, but two of three participants demonstrated defmite improvements in responding to in situ rights restrictions.

Intellectual property rights and the campaign for access to essential medicines : the advocacy role assumed by Médecins Sans Frontières

Non-governmental organizations and transnational networks have been increasingly successful a t gaining influence within issue areas traditionally controlled by the state. In many instances, non-state actors have been instrumental in forcing issues onto the global agenda, have aided in the development or transformation of global regimes, and have participated in securing state compliance for the adoption of new international norms. This paper argues that, consistent with social constructivist theory, ideas are important in influencing state preferences and change may be possible when certain factors are present. I f non-state actors can influence states, it is meaningful to understand how this happens. This paper focuses on a campaign led by Medecins Sans Frontieres that began in the late 1990s to acquire affordable medicines for patients in developing states that could not afford patented drugs. The campaign reached a measure of success in that member states of the World Trade Organization re-negotiated contested terms and meanings within the trade agreement for intellectual property rights and allowed concessions that would benefit lower income states. What factors contributed to the success of the campaign? And what were the most important factors - the issue, the actors or the mechanisms used?

Psychotropic medication use by adults with intellectual disabilities living in community settings

This study examined the variables related to psychotropic medication use among 73 adults with intellectual disabilities living in community residential settings in Ontario, Canada over a one-year period based on staff reports. Despite only 16% percent having a documented psychiatric diagnosis, 84% of these individuals were receiving psychotropic medications, and 74% were receiving two or more psychotropic medications (polypharmacy). Anti-psychotics, anti-anxiety medications, and anti-convulsant medications were the most frequently reported drug classes. While problem behaviour was reported for 60% of the participants, only 33% had a formal behaviour plan. There was a significant relationship between the reported number of problem behaviours and the reported number of prescribed psychotropic medications. Reported medication reviews did not adhere to the Canadian 'Consensus Guidelines for the Primary Care of Adults with Developmental Disabilities' (Sullivan et aI., 2006). Results, based on staff reports, suggested incongruence with recommended best practices, and raised concern about over-reliance on psychotropic medication with these individuals. Keywords: intellectual disabilities, psychotropic medication, problem behaviour

Investigation of Changes in Prescribed and Voluntary Job Roles in Community Service Delivery for People who have Intellectual Disabilities after the Implementation of the 3 Rs; Rights, Respect and Responsibility Project

The purpose of this thesis was to explore whether there is change in organizational citizenship behaviours in community agency staff following agency adoption of a rights - based service philosophy. Four community agency support staff were interviewed to investigate how residential care providers in services for persons who have intellectual disabilities describe their voluntary job related behaviours following training about human rights. The major finding was that the participants were actively engaged in displaying civic virtue, courtesy, and altruism discretionary behaviours. There was evidence of a post rights training shift in communication patterns with support staff reporting that they used language that prom,oted and advocated for human rights, and reported increased communication exchanges among persons supported by the agency, support staff and managers. Participants also suggested that the individuals they support asserted their rights more frequently and they were more active in their own life choices following rights training.

Deinstitutionalization and its Effects on Social Inclusion, Choice-Making, Adaptive and Maladaptive Behavior for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities: Case Studies Analysis

In the past three decades institutions for persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) have been downsizing and closing in Ontario, Canada. This trend is reflective of the changes that have occurred in society. As of March 2009 the last institution operated by the Ontario government for persons with ID closed, placing the remaining approximately 1000 persons into the community. The current study was an analysis of part of one study in a four-study research project, called the Facilities Initiative Study, to explore the impact of the closures on the lives of individuals who have been reintegrated into community settings. The goal of the current case study analysis was to describe the impact of changes in social inclusion, choice-making/autonomy, and adaptive/maladaptive functioning of four individuals prior to and following transition to the community. The results suggested that, in most cases, community integration was related to more social inclusion opportunities and autonomy in choice-making, a wider range of adaptive behaviors and fewer maladaptive behaviors. In some cases, the evidence suggested that some of these indices of quality of life were not improving. Overall, the study found that the differences observed were unique to each of the individuals who participated in the case study analysis. Some generalized themes were generated that can be applied to future deinstitutionalization endeavors.

Managing Risk in a Culture of Rights: Providing Support and Treatment in Community-Based Settings for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities who Sexually Offend

People with intellectual disability who sexually offend commonly live in community-based settings since the closing of all institutions across the province of Ontario. Nine (n=9) front line staff who provide support to these individuals in three different settings (treatment setting, transitional setting, residential setting) were interviewed. Participants responded to 47 questions to explore how sex offenders with intellectual disability can be supported in the community to prevent re-offenses. Questions encompassed variables that included staff attitudes, various factors impacting support, structural components of the setting, quality of life and the good life, staff training, staff perspectives on treatment, and understanding of risk management. Three overlapping models that have been supported in the literature were used collectively for the basis of this research: The Good Lives Model (Ward & Gannon, 2006; Ward et al., 2007), the quality of life model (Felce & Perry, 1995), and variables associated with risk management. Results of this research showed how this population is being supported in the community with an emphasis on the following elements: positive and objective staff attitude, teamwork, clear rules and protocols, ongoing supervision, consistency, highly trained staff, and environments that promote quality of life. New concepts arose which suggested that all settings display an unequal balance of upholding human rights and managing risks when supporting this high-risk population. This highlights the need for comprehensive assessments in order to match the offender to the proper setting and supports, using an integration of a Risk, Need, Responsivity model and the Good Lives model for offender rehabilitation and to reduce the likelihood of re-offenses.

The effect of synchronized group activities on pain threshold as a predictor of cooperation

Recent research suggests that participating in vigorous synchronized physical activity may result in elevated levels of endorphins, which may in turn affect social bonding (Cohen et. al., 2009). The present research aimed to examine whether or not the change in pain tolerance would be able to predict participants’ willingness to cooperate after statistically controlling for the groups’ condition. Participants were asked to run on a treadmill for 30 minutes under one of two conditions (control vs. synchronized). Prior to and after the run participants underwent a pain tolerance test. Once completed, a second activity was introduced to the participants; a cooperative game. A public goods game was used to measure an individual’s willingness to cooperate. The results showed the synchronized condition was able to predict that participants cooperated more during the public goods game (p = .009), however the change in pain threshold was unable to significantly predict cooperation (p = .32).

Bridging the Conceptualization of Youth with Intellectual Disabilities to Sentencing under the YCJA

The current study examined how disability and the concepts of risk, need and responsivity are understood by criminal justice professionals and inform their perceptions of young offenders with ID at sentencing under the ‘different but equal’ philosophy. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 lawyers and 8 mental health workers across 6 major urban areas in Ontario. Participants primarily perceived ID through a medical discourse, overlooking social and structural barriers that, in some cases, may hinder adherence to sentencing dispositions. Specifically, participants discussed balancing the reduced culpability of offenders (e.g., intent) – justifying lenient sentencing – with public safety concerns (i.e., ID viewed as a barrier to rehabilitation) – justifying increasing the severity of sentences. Participants assessed clients with ID and their risks, needs and responsivity within the context of other legal factors: criminal history, severity of the offence, and YCJA objectives. Participants articulated the importance of tailored courthouse identification programs, services/funding, and education/training.

Examining Predictors of Quality of Life of Adults with Intellectual Disabilities After Deinstitutionalization

This study examined if a person’s quality of life could be predicted by six relevant factors in a sample of 114 individuals with intellectual disability who had moved from institutional settings to community living settings within Ontario. Further, two aspects of self-efficacy were tested to see if they moderated the relationship between the possible predictors and the quality of life indicator. The initial multiple regression model accounted for a very small amount of the variance in the outcome (r2 = .08). The second analysis included decision-making as a predictor (r2 = .35) but did not find it to be moderator. The third analysis used opportunities for change as a predictor (r2 = .28), and as a moderator with two significant interaction terms, health and years in an institutional setting (r2 = .35). These findings support the often-theorized influence of self-efficacy on quality of life for individuals with intellectual disability.

Creating and Enabling a Sustainable Livelihood for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities: A Comparative Case Study of Ghana and Canada.

Abstract Despite the plethora of published studies on rights, including employment rights, for persons with intellectual disabilities (Hatton, 2002; Tarulli, et al., 2004; Ward & Stewart, 2008), relatively few have discussed their applicability to individuals with intellectual disabilities to facilitate their full involvement in socio-economic development. This study explored the mechanisms facilitating and inhibiting the full participation of persons with intellectual disabilities in the area of employment through a comparative case analysis of policies and practices in Ontario, Canada (a developed country) and in Ghana (a developing country) both of which are signatories to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). The study employed targeted recruitment based on the nature of the research which is a combination of policy and practice investigation.

Vertical R&D Sprillovers, Cooperation, Market Structure, and Innovation.

This paper studies vertical R&D spillovers between upstream and downstream firms. The model incorporates two vertically related industries, with horizontal spillovers within each industry and vertical spillovers between the two industries. Four types of R&D cooperation are studied : no cooperation, horizontal cooperation, vertical cooperation, and simultaneous horizontal and vertical cooperation. Vertical spillovers always increase R&D and welfare, while horizontal spillovers may increase or decrease them. The comparison of cooperative settings in terms of R&D shows that no setting uniformly dominates the others. Which type of cooperation yields more R&D depends on horizontal and vertical spillovers, and market structure. The ranking of cooperative structures hinges on the signs and magnitudes of three competitive externalities (vertical, horizontal, and diagonal) which capture the effect of the R&D of a firm on the profits of other firms. One of the basic results of the strategic investment literature is that cooperation between competitors increases (decreases) R&D when horizontal spillovers are high (low); the model shows that this result does not necessarily hold when vertical spillovers and vertical cooperation are taken into account. The paper proposes a theory of innovation and market structure, showing that the relation between innovation and competition depends on horizontal spillovers, vertical spillovers, and cooperative settings. The private incentives for R&D cooperation are addressed. It is found that buyers and sellers have divergent interests regarding the choice of cooperative settings and that spillovers increase the likelihood of the emergence of cooperation in a decentralized equilibrium.

Information Sharing and the Stability of Cooperation in Research Joint Ventures.

The model studies information sharing and the stability of cooperation in cost reducing Research Joint Ventures (RJVs). In a four-stage game-theoretic framework, firms decide on participation in a RJV, information sharing, R&D expenditures, and output. An important feature of the model is that voluntary information sharing between cooperating firms increases information leakage from the RJV to outsiders. It is found that it is the spillover from the RJV to outsiders which determines the decision of insiders whether to share information, while it is the spillover affecting all firms which determines the level of information sharing within the RJV. RJVs representing a larger portion of firms in the industry are more likely to share information. It is also found that when sharing information is costless, firms never choose intermediate levels of information sharing : they share all the information or none at all. The size of the RJV is found to depend on three effects : a coordination effect, an information sharing effect, and a competition effect. Depending on the relative magnitudes of these effects, the size of the RJV may increase or decrease with spillovers. The effect of information sharing on the profitability of firms as well as on welfare is studied.