Disability,identity and disclosure in the online dating environment

This paper examines how disabled people construct self-identity and negotiate disclosure of impairment in the online dating environment. Grounded theory was used to code and analyze 108 responses to an online open-ended questionnaire completed by disabled people who engaged in online dating. Findings reveal that while the body and impairment may not be present in digital space, it plays an important role in how disabled people present themselves online. This paper suggests that the embodied/disembodied dichotomy that has been traditionally used to distinguish offline and online interaction is blurred in the online dating environment.     

Navigating disabling spaces: challenging ontological norms and the spatialization of difference through ‘Embodied Practices of Mobility’

This article draws from diary and interview data to look at the strategic ways in which disabled people use mobile devices to navigate their social and spatial world. The data reveal that space is not passively perceived, but rather actively challenged and reconfigured. The concept of ‘embodied practices of mobility’ is introduced to account for the ways in which disabled people negotiate access and inclusion. By using mobile devices to access information, connect with others and engage in advocacy, participants are contesting spaces that are arranged according to preconceived ontological norms and asserting their embodied presence.