“My diagnosis is not who I am … even though I may identify as a person with a disability”: A Qualitative Exploration of Disability Identity in College Students
Background: College students experience disproportionately high rates of mental health concerns, with over 60% of students meeting criteria for at least one DSM-5 disorder in recent years (Lipson et al., 2022). Disabled college students face unique barriers due to inaccessible environments (Francis et al., 2019). Accordingly, this population experiences even higher rates of anxiety, academic distress, and suicidal ideation compared to students without disabilities (Coduti et al., 2016). Having a cultural identity can be a protective factor against negative mental health outcomes (Burnett-Ziegler et al., 2013), so it is important to understand how disabled college students perceive their own disabilities. However, this topic has been relatively understudied to date. The objective of the present study is to examine how disabled college students perceive their disabilities.
Methods: Participants were 21 college students with disabilities coming from one of three universities in the northeast US. On average, students were White (n = 12), women (n = 16), and 23.43 years old. Although all students received accommodations through Disability Services, most (n = 15) reported identifying as a person with a disability, and the most common disabilities were mental health conditions (n = 10), ADHD (n = 8), chronic health conditions (n = 6) and learning disabilities (n = 6). Participants completed a semi-structured interview about their experiences attending college as a disabled student. A subset of questions related to disability identity are analyzed in the current study. Interviews were analyzed using thematic analysis.
Results: Most participants viewed their disabilities both positively and negatively. Some held more consistent viewpoints than others. When asked how important disability was to their identity, many participants discussed how having a disability brought both strengths and challenges. A minority of participants discussed only one of these themes. Approximately a third of participants also expressed that they were also “just themselves”. Interesting, all participants who endorsed this theme also identified to some degree with disability.
Discussion: Disabled college students hold a wide range of attitudes towards disability as an identity, believe disability is associated with both strengths and challenges, and maintain the importance of individuality alongside disability. Accordingly, culturally appropriate mental health care for disabled college students should take into account individual student’s identities and hold the dialectic that strengths and challenges can occur in tandem.
Researcher: Elodie Carel, Clinical Psychology doctoral student; Alexandra Lauterbach, Professor in Special Education; Ashley Woodman, Faculty in Psychological and Brain Sciences
Presentations: ABCT, November 20, 2025
Shaping Future Physicians: Premedical Students’ Views on Disability and its Impact on Medical Education
For over fifty years, federal disability civil rights laws have mandated that patients with disabilities receive
equitable health care, however, this has not been realized. Many physicians do not know disability law
and the rights disabled individuals have in health care settings. Despite the rising rate of diagnosis for some types of disability, there remains insufficient training for healthcare professionals to care for this underserved population, especially in adulthood. Training helps physicians and other healthcare workers understand the unique needs and challenges faced by disabled patients, fostering empathy and effective communication. Quality healthcare cannot be provided if physicians are not educated. The present study asks: what are pre-medical students’ attitudes and perspectives toward disabled individuals? Do pre-medical students’ attitudes and perspectives differ from other pre-health students?
Student researcher: Katelyn Horan, Biology, 2025, with assistance from RAs Noy Toledano & Abby Beardsley
Presentations: Neurodiversity and Disability Studies Summit, April 5, 2025
Perceptions of Stigma and Identity among College Students with Psychosocial Disability
We have wrapped data collection on a qualitative study on the experience of undergraduate students with psychosocial disability (also known as mental illness). The purpose of this study was to see how college students incorporate their diagnoses into their sense of identity and to understand how differing levels of stigma in a student’s environment influence the extent to which they adopt their diagnoses as part of their sense of self.
Student researchers: Elizabeth Kilgallon, Psychology, 2021; Sophie Hoffmann, Psychology, 2024
Presentations: Pacific Rim International Conference on Disability and Diversity, April 15, 2025
Attitudes toward the Value of College for Students with Intellectual Disability: Perspectives from Traditionally Enrolled Peers
Students with intellectual disability (ID) are attending college at higher rates than ever before. Through a variety of pathways, students with intellectual disability are experiencing the social, educational, and vocational benefits of higher education. To be successfully integrated into campus life, however, students must be welcomed by their traditionally enrolled peers in all aspects of campus life. We are currently analyzing survey and open-ended responses from traditionally enrolled students, both with and without disability, collected in 2017 and 2023.
Student researcher: Emily Achuck, Psychology, ‘2020.
Presentations: Gatlinburg Conference, 2024 (HTML, PPT).