Glossary

Searchable terminology from accessibility, web standards, and related fields.

9 results found in Ableism.

Ableist Language (Disability Slurs, Derogatory Disability Language)
Ableist language refers to words, phrases, and framings that demean, stereotype, or pathologize people with disabilities — from explicit slurs such as 'cripple,' 'handicap,' 'retard,' or 'lame' used p…
Ableist Microaggressions Scale (AMS)
A validated measurement instrument developed by Conover, Israel, and Nylund-Gibson (2017) to systematically assess the frequency and impact of subtle, everyday expressions of ableism. The AMS organise…
Academic Ableism
Systemic discrimination against disabled people within academic institutions and research practices. In higher education, academic ableism manifests through inaccessible learning environments, expecta…
Aversive Disablism (Aversive Ableism, Subtle Disablism)
Aversive disablism is a concept from disability studies, developed by Mark Deal, describing a form of subtle, often unconscious prejudice toward disabled people. Aversive disablists recognize that dis…
Biomedicalization of Aging (Medicalization of Aging)
The tendency, identified by critical gerontologists, to reduce the complexity of later life to problems of physical and cognitive decline requiring medical or technological intervention. Biomedicaliza…
Disability Microaggression (Ableist Microaggression)
A subtle, often unintentional verbal, non-verbal, or environmental slight, snub, or insult that communicates hostility, marginalization, or prejudice toward a person with a disability. Conover et al. …
Disablism (Disability Discrimination)
Discriminatory, oppressive, or abusive behaviour directed at people because of their disability, encompassing both individual acts of prejudice and systemic societal barriers. Coined by the Union of P…
Embodied Harassment
Harassment in virtual reality environments that targets a user's avatar body or physical representation, such as invading personal space, mimicking movements, or physically interacting with avatar fea…
Phonocentrism
The ideological privileging of spoken language as the default and superior mode of communication, with corresponding devaluation of signed, typed, symbolic, or augmentative forms. In accessibility, ph…