Literature Review on Provision of Appropriate and Accessible ...

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Studies consistently show that women with learning disabilities are at
risk from abuse, predominantly by men within their networks, including
other service users, staff, family members, neighbours and friends of the
family (McCarthy, 1999; McCarthy and Thompson, 1997; Brown, Stein and
Turk, 1995; Hard and Plumb, 1987; Stromsness, 1993).
Support to People with an Intellectual Disability who are
Accessible
and Appropriate of Provision on <strong>Review</strong> <strong>Literature</strong>
Experiencing Crisis Pregnancy
People with intellectual disability may experience a high incidence of
sexual assault and sexual exploitation because of their ‘lack of power
over resources, relationships, decision-making and information and the
fact that social attitudes may stigmatise them as deviant or of little value
(Rosser, 1990; Hayes & Craddock, 1992: 75; Wilson, Nettlebeck, Potter
and Perry, 1996; Razack, 1994).
Most studies have reported that the majority of the intellectually
disabled victims of sexual exploitation have mild or moderate intellectual
disability, but this may be because most accounts of exploitation come to
light through the victim’s disclosure (Brown et al., 1995; Turk and Brown,
1993). Murphy (2007) contends that those cases of sexual exploitation
perpetrated against individuals with more severe disabilities may not in
fact be recognised.
3.4.1 Definition of abuse
Brown and Turk (1992) define abuse as occurring ‘where sexual acts are
performed on or with someone who is unwilling or unable to consent to
those acts’. These authors include both cognitive ability and inequalities
of power within the assessment of whether an individual is able to
consent – that is, ‘whether the person had the ability to consent to sexual
relationships in general and/or was able to do so without undue pressure
in this particular situation’.
Matthews (1994) has addressed the sexual abuse of a person with
learning disabilities, arguing sexual abuse can take place ‘where that
person’s apparent willingness is unacceptably exploited’. McCarthy (1999)
notes that this development of the definition strengthens the argument
on the existence of ‘barriers’ to consent within certain relationships
(Brown and Turk, 1992; Sgroi, 1989). According to McCarthy, this is useful
as it indicates that although a person with learning disabilities may have