Supported decision-making for persons with intellectual disabilities in Japan and Taiwan: a survey of social workers’ and adult guardians’ awareness of supported decision-making

Abstract

Background: Priority given to supported decision-making has increased internationally since the United Nations General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPDs). Nations worldwide have moved to ratify and enact the CRPD. Methods: A questionnaire survey on the supported decision-making status was conducted in Japan and Taiwan (60 and 73 people, respectively; N = 133, 82 women and 51 men). Survey items were objective indicators based on the CRPD. Results: In both countries, people who are older (vs younger) or those having more (vs less) experience supporting persons with intellectual disabilities were more likely to practice supported decision-making. Relationships between persons with intellectual disabilities and family members are vital. Conclusions: It is necessary to establish appropriate supported decision-making methods, that do not depend on aspects such as support experience, for persons with intellectual disabilities in Japan and Taiwan. Additionally, it is necessary to clarify the relationship with the family in supported decision-making for persons with intellectual disabilities and to work together appropriately.

Keywords:

• Supported decision-making
• supporter awareness
• supporter practice
• family relationships
• persons with intellectual disabilities

Acknowledgements

This research was conducted under the FY2019 Faculty Exchange Program between University of Tsukuba and National Taiwan University. This research was also conducted under the cooperation of the Japan Network of Supported Decision and the Parents Association for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities, Taiwan. We express our gratitude to both organisations. We also thank Editage (www.editage.com) for English language editing.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

The datasets used and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request

Correction Statement

This article has been corrected with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.