PUBLICATIONS

Compulsory Youthfulness: Intersections of Ableism and Ageism in "Successful Aging" Discourses
Gibbons, H. M. (2016) 
​Review of Disability Studies, 12(2&3), 70-88.

This article forwards the theory of compulsory youthfulness as a way to explore how ableism, ageism, and other systems of oppression intersect to produce the societal mandate that people must remain youthful and non-disabled throughout the life course, particularly in a cultural context that holds successful aging as an ideal.

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Siblings with Disabilities: A Duoethnography on the Intersections between a Sibling Relationship and Disability 
Gibbons, H. M., & Gibbons, C. M. (2016)
Disability & Society, 31(6), 820-837.

​A growing body of research examines the intersections between sibling relationships and disability.  However, much of this research focuses on non-disabled siblings and their relationships with disabled siblings, thereby continuing to center able-bodiedness while further marginalizing people with disabilities.  This research centered the voices of two siblings who are both disabled.  Using duoethnography, we engaged in a dialogue about how disability and our sibling relationship intersect.  Our dialogue demonstrated the complexity of our experiences as siblings and as disabled people.  We explored how the fact that one of us has a physical disability and the other one does not resulted in role asymmetry and power differentials.  Conversely, we discussed how our shared experience of having psychiatric disabilities had a positive influence on our closeness, and enhanced our ability to provide mutual support and engage in reciprocity.  This duoethnography has important implications for the inclusion of disabled siblings in future research.  ​

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Perceptions of Health and Healthcare of People with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities in Medicaid Managed Care
Gibbons, H. M., Owen, R., & Heller, T. (2016)
Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, 54(2), 94-105.

This study examined perceptions of health and healthcare of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) receiving Medicaid Managed Care.  Exploratory, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 23 participants.  Findings indicate that participants generally expressed being in good health, and defined good health as: (a) absence of pain, disease, and symptoms, (b) adherence to or not requiring treatment, (c) physical self-care, (d) mental or spiritual self-care, and (e) ability to perform the activities one wants to do.  Participants conceptualized healthcare as:  (a) ensuring needs are met through access to services, (b) obtaining quality services, (c) navigating the healthcare system successfully, and (d) receiving humanizing healthcare.  This study has implications for improving healthcare and communications between people with IDD and healthcare providers. 

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Caregiving and Family Support Interventions: Crossing Networks of Aging and Developmental Disabilities
Heller, T., Gibbons, H. M., and Fisher. D. (2015).
Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, 53(5), 329-345.

This scoping review addressed the following questions: 1) What types of caregiver interventions are being done in both aging and developmental disability research? 2) How are these interventions similar and different? 3) What kinds of outcomes do these interventions have? 4) What innovative approaches are these interventions using? 5) What can each field (developmental disabilities and gerontology) learn from the other based on this review? The disability review spanned twenty years (1992-2012), resulting in 14 studies; the aging review spanned five years (2008-2012), resulting in 55 studies. Data from the final selected studies was then extracted and compared on research design, type of intervention (governmental programs, small group psychosocial, and other), and outcomes. Generally, in both fields, family support interventions benefited participants' well-being and improved service access and satisfaction. Increased partnership between the fields of aging and developmental disabilities is critical to future scholarship in caregiving for both populations.

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Explicit Versus Implicit Family Decision-Making Strategies Among Mexican American Caregiving Adult Children 
Radina, M. E., Gibbons, H. M., Lim, J. (2009)
Marriage & Family Review, 45(4), 392-411.

Changing U.S. demographics make it increasingly vital to investigate experiences of Latinos caring for aging parents, with specific emphasis on how these families, who often value family closeness, make decisions about caregiving. This study investigates relationships among use of implicit versus explicit decision-making strategies, generation since immigration, and orientation toward family. Findings suggest that those with more recent immigration to the United States were more likely than those who immigrated longer ago to describe family decision making about their parents’ care as implicit. Those that were classified as using predominately implicit decision making were also found to be not significantly different from those classified as predominantly explicit with regard to their overall support of a collective orientation toward family. There were exceptions to this, however, regarding two specific aspects of orientation toward family: engagement in shared activities with family members and avoiding family conflict by making choices that are consistent with the family values. In both cases those categorized as implicit expressed stronger endorsement of these specific values. These findings suggest that the relationship between family decision-making strategies, generation since immigration, and orientation toward family is more complex than suggested previously in the literature. Implications for future research and practice are offered.

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Divorce and Mid- and Later Life Families: A Phenomenological Analysis with Implications for Family Life Educators 
Radina, M. E., Hennon, C. B., & Gibbons, H. M. (2008)
Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 49(1/2), 142-170.

A growing number of mid- and later life individuals and families are experiencing divorce and remarriage. Mid- and later life families are those who have begun to or may have launched their adult children. As a result, these families may include in-laws and grandchildren. Limited research has addressed the potentially unique experiences of these families whose lives are made more complex and complicated by divorce, remarriage, or both. The purpose of this article is to examine, from a phenomenological perspective, the lived experiences of individuals and families experiencing divorce in mid- and later life. In so doing, four case studies are presented that represent four common pathways through divorce and remarriage in mid- and later life: career divorced, seasoned divorced, newly divorced, and interrupted career divorced. Using these case studies and our interpretation of them based on a phenomenological approach, we offer implications for family life educators for improving the delivery of educational services to families facing mid- and later life divorce and remarriage.

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