A Participatory Process Involving People with Development Disabilities in Community Development

摘要

The community integration movement emphasized in the developmental disabilities field is consistent with recent theorizing in community development that promotes participation and involvement. Advocates, persons served, families, service providers and managers in the developmental disabilities service system are increasingly interested in participatory methods that promote input into the development, implementation, and refinement of services. The current paper describes a four-step process by which people with developmental disabilities, their families, and local service providers contributed to the development of an area-wide strategic plan for the local developmental disabilities service system. Each step of the process is described in detail. Insights from the process and its relation to community development are provided.