Table 1
Classification of Barriers and Facilitators to Cultural Participation by People with Disabilities (PWD).
| CATEGORY | TYPES OF BARRIERS | FACILITATORS THAT ADDRESS/COUNTERACT THOSE BARRIERS |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Lack of effective/adequate legislation, policies, and legal standards | Misconception of arts participation in developmental or therapeutic terms by policy and funding agencies. Lack of:
Financial disincentives to employment (‘welfare traps’). | Enactment/implementation of legislation on equality that applies to the cultural sector and that, inter alia, supports decision-making by PWD and employment of artists with disabilities. Consider quota systems to ensure artists with disabilities have opportunities to train and practice creative activities. Establishment of specific government bureau focused on disability art, as well as a hub for mainstreaming disability in culture. Policies on education designed to ensure
|
| 2. Lack of funding and/or of adequate services | Funding streams linked to medical-model approaches focused on deficit and therapy. Lack of support (such as provision of personal assistance) to attend cultural events/venues. Funding issues leading to little/partial engagement by agencies, institutions/venues with barriers to participation, and partial implementation of accessibility strategies. Cost of transport, tickets, and attendance and lack of access to finances to enable participation. | Funding streams linked to making opportunities (at all levels) accessible and linked with artistic (not medical) aims. More funding, peer support, and other forms of support (including personal assistance) for engaging in cultural activities and artistic creation. Special IT and equipment (to facilitate consumption, training, and creation) and more information sharing as to IT solutions (including cost-effective ones). |
| 3. Negative attitudes | Lack of knowledge and ambition (which can be linked to ideas of disability arts as therapy) and negative attitudes of staff create barriers for audiences/visitors and creators/participants. | Development of
|
| Absence of a sense of welcome or community (especially important for some groups). Aesthetic barriers in professional contexts (especially in some art forms, such as dance) related to ideas of ideal body types for performers and for leaders. | Showcasing of role models who are PWD. Virtuous circle in which engagement is understood as potentially transformational for individuals and for societies, leading to re-conceptualisation of disability itself. | |
| 4. Lack of accessibility | Access facilitated only for special exhibitions or parts of an exhibition/venue—not mainstreamed within everyday offerings—and lack of knowledge of staff. Venues that are accessible (or partly accessible) for audiences but not performers. Lack of
| Accessible front- and back-of-house design. More frequent scheduling and mainstreaming of events/tours/performances that are accessible. Use of IT supported by consultation with different groups of PWD and by guidelines encompassing different types of disability and promoting awareness of existing IT solutions. Accessible design might include mobile devices, assistive listening systems, and embedding audio-description, information, and way-finding (incorporating audible, tactile, and visual cues and environments that support different cognitive needs). Requesting feedback from visitors with disabilities about what was difficult to navigate. Marketing communication and public relations to promote an accessible and welcoming environment for audiences and artists. Accessible websites, including instructions on accessibility and on getting from nearby public transport. Participatory approaches and engagement that help build a sense of belonging and community. |
| 5. Lack of consultation with, and involvement of, persons with disabilities in cultural organisations | Insufficient involvement of PWD in cultural industries, including
Working cultures (i.e., unpredictability and long hours) that are challenging for PWD. | Input by PWD
Changes in organisational and employment practices:
|
[i] Note: ‘Facilitators’ include policies/practices identified as operating in some cases within the studies cited and suggestions made by the authors of those studies.