The Arc Maryland Personal Space Program Curriculum Guide | Page 12

personal assistant. By a significant amount, studies reveal that the largest group of offenders
are disability service providers; 67% who sexually assaulted or abused people with severe to
profound mental retardation contacted their victims through specialized disability services
(Sobsey, 1994). Turk and Brown report that 98% of sexual assault/abuse offenders are male
(Turk and Brown, 1992). Margolin reported that, controlling for relative care giving time,
male caregivers abuse those in their care more than 6.5 times as often as their female
counterparts (Margolin, 1992). This fact, coupled with the overwhelmingly sexual nature of
the abuse and assault, leaves no doubt that the majority of crimes that women with
developmental disabilities experience are gender-based. Domestic violence is a pattern of
coercive behaviors, perpetrated by a current or former intimate partner or caregiver, that may
include physical, sexual, and/or psychological assaults, in addition to social isolation,
deprivation, and intimidation. When a woman with a disability is put in physical danger, or
controlled by the threat or use of physical force, she is a victim of domestic violence.
Control and power are the core issues in domestic violence. The perpetrator uses fear and
the threat of physical harm to control his victim. Very often the perpetrator controls the
individual’s access to financial resources. He may use his physical and economic control to
limit the victim’s access to transportation and medical care, particularly if her care requires
regular appointments. Inherent within the framework of the caregiver/client relationship is
the potential for abuse, particularly when the victim is isolated or segregated from traditional
community relationships and supports. According to the literature on domestic violence, a
key predictor of being a victim of domestic violence is social isolation and lack of social
support (Straus et. al., 1980). This is of particular concern for women and girls with
developmental disabilities, who report less social activities and less involvement in
community life than their non-disabled peers. In addition, many of these women have been
taught to comply to the requests and demands of others and not to question those demands.
As a result, a perpetrator may need only to express an expectation of compliance rather than
make an outward threat, making these women even more vulnerable to sexual victimization.
The need for ongoing educational activities in the areas of assertiveness, self-esteem, selfadvocacy, civil rights, and violence prevention is clear.
Program Evaluation
As part of the Personal SPACE Program, the Research and Development Team developed a
pre- and post- program survey to evaluate program effectiveness. The two-page survey
(located in the Appendices) measures attitudes, knowledge, and skills in each of the class
subject areas. Pre-program surveys were given to each participant prior to the programs
beginning and post-program surveys were scheduled after the program’s completion. The
program evaluation demonstrated that as a result of taking the classes, program participants
retained knowledge learned. In addition to the pre- and post- program surveys, each class
was evaluated by self-advocate trainers using a tool to measure classroom environment,
trainer success, and levels of participation by individual class participants and the group as a
whole (see Appendices).
Comparison of the overall average number of pre- and post- program survey questions with
the preferred answers suggested that the program caused the desired change in both pilots of

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