Medical Model of Disability

A framework that views disability as a deficit or pathology within an individual that should be treated, cured, or rehabilitated. Under the medical model, disability is seen as a personal health problem, and the primary response is medical intervention to make the individual more "normal." This model has been widely critiqued by disability scholars and activists for pathologizing natural human variation, placing the burden of adaptation entirely on disabled individuals, and ignoring the social and environmental factors that create disabling conditions. Despite criticism, medical model thinking persists in many healthcare and technology design contexts.