week 11 Flashcards
assumptions underlining occupational justicie
- Occupation is a biological and social necessity for human survival, development and thriving and is central to human adaptation, health and well-being
- Its absence or disruption (regardless of any other medical or social problem) is a threat to health
- When illness, trauma or social conditions have affected the biologic or psychological health of a person, occupation is an effective means of reorganising behaviour.
- Humans are occupational beings. Their existence depends on enablement of diverse opportunities and resources for participation in culturally-defined & health building occupations (Wilcock 1993;1998)
- Denial of universal access to opportunities and /or resources to participate in culturally-defined, health building occupations is unjust (Townsend & Wilcock, 2004)
definitions of occupational justice
- Individuals have a unique set of occupational capacities, needs and routines within the context of their environment and that individuals have the right to exercise their capacity to promote and sustain their health and quality of life
- An occupationally just society is where each person and community could meet their own and others’ survival, physical, mental and social development needs through occupation that recognised and encouraged individual and communal strengths
social jsutice vs occupational justice
Social justice: addresses the social relations and social conditions of life. Ethical distribution and sharing of resources, rights and responsibilities between people recognising their equal worth.
Occupational justice: addresses what people do in their relationships and their conditions for living and their need to freely participate in meaningful occupations. Also that humans have unique occupational needs, abilities and resources. Both are described as having common concepts of
possible outcomes of occupational risk and injustice
- Occupational imbalance
- Occupational deprivation
- Occupational alienation
- Occupational marginalisation
occupaitonal balance
- Prolonged restrictions or denial of access to opportunities and resources to participate in occupation (Townsend & Wilcock 2004) eg excessive time spent occupied in one area of life at the expense of other areas (Stadnyk et al. 2010)
- When the timing of occupations is out of alignment with personal or physiological needs or routines eg shift work
- “…involves a state that occurs because people’s engagement in occupation fails to meet their unique physical, social, mental, or rest needs and allows insufficient time for their own occupational interests and growth as well as for the occupations each feels obliged to undertake to meet family, social & community commitments” (Wilcock, 1998, p. 138).
indications of imbalance
- lack of vigorous physical activity. The human body is becoming redundant as a source of energy in the workplace – cardiovascular problems, osteoporosis, anxiety, depression, weight gain, obesity.
- sleep/wake patterns & pace of life changing
- negative emotions – boredom/burnout – underload/overload
- haves and have nots – information rich /information poor, informed/illiterate, employed/unemployed
occupational deprivation
• “…the influence of an external agency or circumstances that keeps a person from “acquiring, using, or enjoying something” (Wilcock, 1998, p. 145).
• A state of prolonged preclusion from engagement in occupations of necessity and/or meaning due to factors which stand outside of the control of the individual; the resulting loss of capacities, knowledge, and skills have a detrimental effect on health and well-being (Whiteford, 2010)
– External circumstances may include social, environmental, economic, geographic, historical, cultural, political or interpersonal factors
occupational deprivation vs occupational disruption
Deprivation:
- Prolonged
- Participant is limited by external factors that are not within the persons control or environmental forces such as prolonged isolation, confinement or war.
Disruption:
• Temporary or transient
• Results from factors that are internal or individual, such as illness, moving towns, changing jobs.
• Can be resolved given supportive conditions
things to be mindful of when t comes to occpupational deprivation
- Is there specific EVIDENCE to support that someone is experiencing occupational deprivation?
- Could you be imposing your values onto another person by saying that someone is occupationally deprived?
- OT has other concepts that are more measurable that concerning issues such as deprivation- eg (lack of) roles, interests, habits, engagement, time use etc
occupational aleintation
- Prolonged experience of disconnectedness, isolation, emptiness, lack of a sense of identity, a limited or confined expression of spirit or a sense of meaninglessness (Townsend & Wilcock, 2004)
- Impacts on the formation of positive identities
occupational marginalisation
Exclusion from participation in occupations based on invisible norms and expectations about who should participate in what occupations, how, when, where and why (Stadynk et al, 2010)
People are not afforded the opportunity to participate in occupations and to exert choices and decision making related to occupational participation
Often is invisible as its based on expectations (e.g. unpaid care-giving), hidden occupations (e.g. prostitution)
Excludes people from the opportunity to participate in valued occupations:
criticisms of occupational justice concepts
- Lack of consensus and guidelines for application
- Lack of including the WFOT Position Statement on Human Rights (2006) which uses similar terms and concepts and reaffirms WFOTs support of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
- Occupational justice is not the sole responsibility of OT and has similarities with the concept of social justice
- No clear and consistent definition of the concepts meaning that there is no work related to developing models to guide practice using an occupational justice framework
- Few people contribution to this literature – 11-13 works coauthored by four people. Why?
four outcomes expected wit occupational justice
- Right to experience occupation as meaningful and enriching (injustice; alienation)
- Right to develop through participation in occupations for health and social inclusion (injustice; deprivation)
- Right to exert individual or population autonomy through choice
in occupations (injustice; marginalisation) - Right to benefit from fair privileges for diverse participation (balance) in occupations (injustice; imbalance)
