2025/07/01 by Scott D. Landes, Bonnielin K. Swenor, Jean P. Hall +10 · 1 voice · 1 citation
Medicine · Social Sciences · #Cerebral Palsy and Movement Disorders #Disability Rights and Representation #Down syndrome and intellectual disability research
paper · pdf · doi:10.1093/haschl/qxaf137
openalex publication_date 2025/07/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
Introduction: Current disability questions used in many US federal surveys exclusively measure disability as having 1 or more of 6 functional limitations. This strategy is at odds with who is disabled as some disabled people do not experience these limitations. Methods: Using data from a nationally representative survey of 2169 adults, this study describes the potential of a comprehensive disability status question to improve the measurement of disability. Results: Results from this study demonstrate that a comprehensive disability status question successfully identifies disabled people who both do, and do not, experience limitations. Conclusion: These findings suggest that a single comprehensive disability status question may provide a viable and more inclusive alternative to identifying the disabled population in US federal surveys.