The Right of Political Participation of People With Disability: Advocacy in the Australian Context

Abstract

This study is an attempt to deepen the understanding of the social phenomenon of political participation of people with disability by answering the question: “how does the social phenomenon work, and why does it work in this way”. To achieve this objective, the research has; firstly, illustrated the factual and theoretical back ground of the social phenomenon, secondly, designed a special conceptual framework for it, thirdly, detailed its interaction in a specific setting (case study) that is the advocacy campaign for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) in Australia, and, fourthly, explained the various interactions among the elements of the social phenomenon. The research is dealing with issues which face disadvantaged social groups such as people with disability to influence the political processes within their countries. The research argues that marginalized groups like people with disability can make tangible impacts in the political process, when groups’ representatives experience the elements of success such as, political awareness, political opportunity and the right strategy for political action. The research tells the inside story of the NDIS advocacy campaign through a number of interviews with some leading participants in the campaign. The research analyses the macro and the micro aspects of the social phenomenon of political participation of people with disability. While it explains the phenomenon as a whole through the interactions of its three main categories (social group, political context and political action), it, also, explains the interaction among the stakeholders of the phenomenon by focusing on the role of a number of related dynamic variables (networks, social capital and social constriction) which shape the political participation of people with disability as a social group.