Disability Identity and Critical Consciousness Among People with Facial Differences

People with facial differences (FD) experience unique manifestations of stigma, possibly contributing to the high variability in whether they identify as disabled. Three levels of identity specificity can describe how much people with FDs identify with: having a diagnosis, having an FD identity, and having a disability. Critical consciousness, which refers to awareness of and action against injustice, may help mitigate stigma and impact identity.ObjectiveThis study examined associations between demographics, identities, critical consciousness, and life satisfaction.Participants & DesignAdults with FDs were recruited through social media and FD organizations to complete a cross-sectional online questionnaire.Main Outcome & MeasuresThree open-ended questions, Disability Personal Identity Scale, Critical Consciousness Scale, and Satisfaction with Life Scale were completed. Qualitative content analysis described how they learned about the term FD and thoughts about identifying with having a disability. Multiple regressions described relationships between each identity and critical consciousness as well as identities with life satisfaction.ResultsParticipants (N = 60) were mostly white (81%) women (80%) with a college education (88%). All participants self-categorized as having an FD and 59% self-categorized as disabled. Themes of disability identification depended on: health and medical treatment, comparisons to "normal" life, impacts on social/public interactions, and the less frequent societal attitudes. Identifying with their diagnosis and higher education were associated with higher critical consciousness. Study variables were not associated with life satisfaction.ConclusionsGreater awareness of identities and utilizing the term 'FD' in healthcare settings may help to connect more people to FD community.