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Residential autonomy, accessible housing and self-determination for people with physical disabilities

Lead researchers

Research support team

  • Frédéric S. Dumont, PhD
  • Marie-Eve Schmouth, MSc
  • Eliane Begnanhi, MSc

Partners

  • Comité d’action des personnes vivant des situations de handicap – CAPVISH
  • Funding agency: Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada

Context

In September 2019, TVA Nouvelles filmed the enthusiastic proposal by the director and members of CAPVISH of a possible application for people with disabilities to find themselves adapted housing that meets their own needs. In other words, an innovative solution to the problem of finding housing that promotes self-determination. It’s an integrated web platform to improve the search for accessible or adapted housing in the Greater Quebec City area. There are no studies on measuring the residential autonomy of people with physical disabilities.

Objectives

The aim of the partnership with the researchers was to meet CAPVISH’s need to document the usability of their adapted integrated web platform in the Greater Quebec City area. The research objectives were 1) to explore the impact of using the integrated web platform on the self-determination of people with disabilities in relation to residential autonomy; and 2) to explore the impact of using the integrated web platform on the practices of CAPVISH employees and their collaborators involved.

Method

A mixed methodology based on a non-experimental, cross-sectional, intervention-evaluation design was chosen. The intervention consisted in the use of the AppLoad platform by 10 people with disabilities, housing developers and support organizations offering various services. Based on the 4 variables of Wehmeyer’s self-determination model, three data collection tools were developed. To document “abilities” and “perceptions”, a 12-item satisfaction questionnaire was adapted from the ÉSAT 2.0 (Satisfaction with technical aids). To measure “support”, a questionnaire on the effectiveness of using the web platform was to be completed by people who had found accommodation. To document “opportunities suggested by the environment”, an observation grid was created to measure the efficiency of the web platform (6 items) and the self-determination of people with disabilities (5 items).

Results

There were four participants: a respondent with a motor disability, a respondent representing a disability rights organization (AEXQUO), the director and the project manager of the partner organization (CAPVISH). At least one of the two respondents is “not very satisfied” with the information contained on the platform, the efficiency of the platform (finding housing that meets the need) and the configuration of the platform. One respondent was “not at all satisfied” with the filters in the Locate section, as few were active. The two respondents who did not find accessible housing rated the platform’s effectiveness as “negative or moderate or NA” for 5 of the 6 items. Only one item scored “very satisfied”, and that was the speed with which the ability profile was completed. Self-determination scores were low (10/15 and 8/20). As for efficiency, the usage data available are: 8,567 pages visited in 2021 and for half of 2022. Interviews with the last two participants highlighted the technological aspects of the platform, aspects associated with AppLoad services, and promotion to raise awareness and invite people with disabilities to use the platform to find accommodation or related services.

Conclusion

Although it was not possible to demonstrate the platform’s usability (satisfaction, effectiveness, efficiency), the data collected nevertheless made it possible to document the 4 variables of self-determination of people with disabilities for their residential autonomy. The platform can now be accessed at https://www.appload.ca/. The pandemic made it impossible to visit apartments and produce detailed housing files, which partly explains the lack of information on AppLoad, but also the difficulty of recruiting nine respondents with motor disabilities during the funding period. During the pandemic, housing sheets were produced over the telephone by occupational therapy trainees, and other tools, such as the Home Help Reference Bank, were integrated.

Lists of figures and tables available in the 54-page report:

Figure 1. representation of dwelling types according to the degree of community in which they are found and the degree of facilities and services available.
Figure 2: Theoretical framework of the Functional Model of Self-Determination (Wehmeyer, 1999)
Figure 3: Evaluation of the level of autonomy
Figure 4. headings in the Get informed section
Figure 5. Access to filters when searching for information
Figure 6. The 5 tabs of the Appload
Figure 7. Access to the Location section of the home page
Figure 8. A) Sample file at the time of the interview. B) Example of current form
Figure 9. Accessing the Moving section on the home page
Figure 10. Lists of diagnoses in the self-assessment section
Table 1. Satisfaction with various aspects of the Appload platform to promote access to accessible housing for people with disabilities (ÉSAT; n = 2)
Table 2. Effectiveness of the Appload platform in promoting access to accessible housing for people with disabilities (n = 2)*.
Table 3. Personal benefits (self-determination) associated with the use of the Appload platform to promote access to accessible housing for people with disabilities (n = 2)*.