Reframing the learning disabilities experience has been identified by researchers as a key variable in employment success and adjustment in adulthood. This article provides a discussion of theory, related literature, methods, and techniques related to the process of reframing — from recognition, to understanding, to acceptance of the learning disability, to the development of a plan of action. We argue that successful reframing is imperative if one is to take control of his or her learning disability in adult life. It is also necessary for the development and implementation of self-advocacy skills.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Bandler, R., & Grinder, J. (1982). Reframing: Neuro-linguistic programming and the transformation of meaning. Moab, UT: Real People Press.
2.
Barker, J. A. (1992). Paradigms. New York: Harper Business.
3.
Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (1991). Reframing organizations: Artistic choice and leadership. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
4.
Deming, W. E. (1982a). Out of crisis. Cambridge, MA: MIT Center for Advanced Engineering Study.
5.
Deming, W. E. (1982b). Quality, productivity and competitive position. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
6.
Gerber, P. J. (1992). Being learning disabled, a beginning teacher, and teaching a class of students with learning disabilities. Exceptionality, 3, 213–231.
7.
Gerber, P. J. (1994). TJ year two: Starting all over again. In D. Foucar-Szocki (Ed.), Instructional cases for teacher training and educational leadership (pp. 60–76). Harrisonburg, VA: The Commonwealth Center for the Education of Teachers.
8.
Gerber, P. J., Ginsberg, R., & Reiff, H. B. (1992). Identifying alterable patterns of employment success for highly successful adults with learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 25, 475–487.
9.
Gerber, P. J., & Reiff, H. B. (1991). Speaking for themselves: Ethnographic interviews with adults with learning disabilities. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press.
10.
Gerber, P. J., & Reiff, H. B. (1993, February). Making the Americans with Disabilities Act work for you. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Orton Dyslexia Society, New Orleans, LA.
11.
Goldfarb, L., Brotherson, M. J., Summers, J. A., & Turnbull, A. P. (in press). Meeting the challenge of disability and chronic illness—A family guide. Baltimore: Brookes.
12.
Jessee, E. H., Jurkovic, G. J., Wilkie, J., & Chiglinsky, M. (1979). Positive reframing with children: Conceptual and clinical considerations. Unpublished manuscript, Georgia State University, Atlanta.
13.
Kubler-Ross, E. (1969). On death and dying. New York: Macmillan.
14.
Levine, M. D. (1987). Developmental variations and learning disorders. Cambridge, MA: Educator's Publishing Service.
15.
Olson, D., McCubbin, H., Baines, H., Larsen, A., Muxan, M., & Wilson, M. (1983). Families: What makes them work. Beverly Hills, CA: Sage.
16.
President's Committee on the Employment of People with Disabilities. (1990). From paternalism to productivity—Whatever it takes. Washington, DC: President's Committee on the Employment of People with Disabilities.
17.
Senge, P. (1990). The fifth discipline. New York: Doubleday.
18.
Vogel, S. A., & Adelman, P. B. (1992). The success of college students with learning disabilities: Factors related to educational attainment. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 25, 430–441.
19.
Watzlawick, P., Weakland, J., & Fisch, R. (1974). Change: Principles of problem formulation and problem resolution. New York: Norton.
20.
Wehman, P. (1992). Life beyond the classroom. Baltimore: Brookes.
