The Professional Counselor | Volume 13, Issue 4 405 disability community (Kattari, 2020; Lett et al., 2020) and specific disability communities, including people with mental illness (Gonzales et al., 2015), physical disabilities (Conover et al., 2017a), and intellectual disabilities (Eisenman et al., 2020). Also, researchers have examined ableist microaggressions within specific settings such as schools (Dávila, 2015), the workplace (Lee et al., 2019), and higher education (Lett et al., 2020). Collectively, these results supported the initial eight ableist microaggression domains Keller and Galgay identified and expanded how they were understood. The multidimensionality of disability has led scholars to examine the influence of disability characteristics—including visibility, severity, type, and age of onset of disability—on the occurrence of ableist microaggressions. Visible or apparent disabilities are defined primarily by the use of an adaptive aid or accommodation such as a cane, crutches, service animal, hearing aid, or wheelchair that results in others immediately labeling the person as disabled; whereas people with hidden, invisible, or nonapparent disabilities are likely to pass as nondisabled and must navigate how, when, and to whom to disclose their disability status. Using two different ableist microaggression scales with relatively large samples of PWD, both Conover et al. (2017a) and Kattari (2020) reported that level of visibility of disability impacts the occurrence of ableist microaggressions, with individuals with visible disabilities consistently experiencing more ableist microaggressions than their counterparts. Further examination of these differences resulted in Andreou et al. (2021) reporting that people with visible disabilities encountered more helplessness- and otherization-related ableist microaggressions, while persons with hidden disabilities encountered more minimization-type ableist microaggressions. In contrast, the impact of severity, age of onset, and type of disability on the occurrence of ableist microaggressions have yielded mixed findings, suggesting more research is warranted. For instance, Conover et al. (2017a) found that people with severe and early onset of disability (i.e., 0–40 years) reported greater lifetime experiences of ableist microaggressions, while Andreou et al. (2021) noted no differences based on severity or age of onset. With respect to type of disability, Conover et al. (2017a) reported no differences, while Andreou et al. (2021) found overall differences in the occurrence of ableist microaggressions, as well as type of ableist microaggressions, experienced by people with different types of disabilities. Although some scholars have considered PWD’s intersecting cultural identities in their research studies, including sexual minorities (e.g., Conover & Israel, 2019; Hunt et al., 2006), gender identities (measured as male and female; Conover et al., 2017a), women with visible and invisible disabilities (Olkin et al., 2019), and racial or ethnic minorities (Conover et al., 2017a; Dávila, 2015), few studies have added to our understanding of ableist microaggressions across intersecting sociocultural identities. For example, Conover and Israel (2019) found that PWD who were also sexual minorities encountered ableist microaggressions in sexual minority communities, while Conover et al. (2017a) discovered that gender (as measured by male and female) and race (as measured by White or Person of Color) did not impact the occurrence of ableist microaggressions; these results contrast Dávila (2015), who found that Latinx PWD encountered microaggressions that aligned with both racial and disability microaggressions. Although scholars have provided valuable data about ableist microaggressions they have not considered the full range of sociocultural identities PWD hold or the differences in the types of ableist microaggressions (i.e., helplessness, minimization, denial of personhood, and otherization) PWD experience combined with their nondominant sociocultural identities. The purpose of this study was to examine the occurrence and types of ableist microaggressions PWD experience and whether their nondominant sociocultural identities impact their experiences of ableist microaggressions. Our intention was to reveal critical information counselors can use to better serve their clients who have disabilities and experience ableist microaggressions.
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