Znaczenie podjęcia aktywności zawodowej w życiu osoby niepełnosprawnej

Work and broadly understood professional activity constitutes a very significant element of human being’s functioning as it empowers the person, gives the sensation of ability, being independent and needed. Moreover, it is an important part of success while aiming at self-realization. Performing professional work by a disabled person enables him or her to feel socially useful and determines their position in a social hierarchy. It must be said that disabled people constitute the group of people for whom professional work means not only the improvement of their financial situation, but, most of all, it raises their self-esteem. Still, too many disabled people remain vocationally inactive for various reasons; it is not only because of their health. Even though work could give the disabled people some independence, they are forced to fight stereotypes, employers’ ignorance, architectural barriers as well as their own anxiety and low self-esteem. The endless search for the person responsible or blaming others for the present situation will not improve anything. It can only inhibit the process of employing the person with a disability, which may lead those people to adapt demandingness as their way of life. The consequence would be learned helplessness.