Dear all
I am undertaking a project entitled "Community Inclusion: Enhancing
Friendship Networks of People with Disabilities"
In its current form the project will examine the importance of social
networks to people with disabilities and identify appropriate services
models that facilitate and maintain social networks. The aims of the
project are:
· To investigate the nature and extent of existing social networks of
people with a disability;
· To identify existing service models and evaluate their usefulness in
the creation and maintenance of social
networks; and
· To make recommendations for future research, policy development and
the enhancement of service delivery.
The current proposal takes as its starting point the importance of informal
social ties to people with disabilities.
Facilitation of social and friendship networks has been relatively
neglected in the literature. In light of evidence which shows that people
with robust social networks have enhanced health status and improved
quality of life, contemporary disability services need to now develop a
focus on supporting the social networks of people with disabilities. In
addition, it has been shown that individuals who experience higher levels
of informal social support place less demand on formalised support services
than those with lower levels of informal support.
Given the above, I wondered if anyone could point me in the right direction
in terms of literature in this area. There appears to be a paucity of
information on the importance of assisting individuals to create and
maintain their own social networks.
Any assistance would be appreciated.
Many thanks
Kate Bergen
DisAbility Research Unit
Department of Human Services
Melbourne
Australia 3000
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