Americans with Disabilities Act at the 2016 Democratic National Convention Research Project
9/9/16
I am conducting a qualitative research project on the subject of Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) access at the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia. This action research is intended to empower those for whom ADA was intended to provide equal access at the convention, that is delegates and others with disabilities. Another goal of the project is to provide actionable recommendations based on authentic narratives of respondents to better inform future decisions by the Democratic National Committee (DNC) around issues of ADA support at DNC venues of all kinds (campaign offices, party headquarters, the inauguration, state conventions, and any DNC sanctioned event or facility.)
The first phase of the research project is to collect first person narratives. I have been soliciting stories of delegates which have been submitted in text, or previously published and forwarded to me. I have also been transcribing stories, working with the respondent to get it right. Just sharing a story to a sympathetic listener can help a person to unburden emotional cargo.
The second phase of the project is to publish the narratives, I have published some of this raw data on my Dr. P-J website. I have also published my own personal narrative as one data point. (See links below.) Knowing that a larger audience will have access to these narratives can be empowering to the individuals who experienced the Democratic National Committee's ADA service at the convention and related venues.
The final phase of the project is analysis. When the collection and publication of the raw data is complete, I will use the methods of qualitative analysis to code for themes and report the results.
