Left Out: A Revealing Look Into the Everyday Fashion Choices of Individuals With Mobility Disabilities

Abstract

Based on interviews with individuals with mobility disabilities, this thesis argues the lack of mainstream clothing available and the geriatric style of clothing often associated with physical disability is largely a result of the embedded notion that disability is a problem to be solved by the individual – a perspective influenced by the medical sociology of disability. As appearance plays a role in interactions, the stereotypes surrounding physical disability are perpetuated by an appearance that cannot be changed due to the absence of clothing one might desire to wear.