Quality of Life
A concept associated with well-being, happiness, independence, and meaningful outcomes for individuals with disabilities.
What is quality of life?
The ability of individuals to make their own choices and direct their own lives.
What is self-determination?
The level of the ecological system that includes a child’s immediate environment such as family or school.
What is the microsystem?
The system component involving assessment and planning.
What are inputs?
A teaching component where students learn to select between different options.
What is choice making?
A method of assessing quality of life by asking individuals how satisfied they are with different aspects of their lives.
What is personal appraisal?
The ability to function somewhat independently in choosing reinforcers and managing behavior.
What is self-management?
The ecological level that describes interactions between environments like home and school.
What is the mesosystem?
The stage where teaching and interventions are implemented.
What are processes?
A self-determination skill involving identifying goals and working toward them.
What is goal setting and attainment?
A measurement approach that evaluates how well a person functions in different environments.
What is functional assessment?
One of the four characteristics of self-determination involving acting according to personal preferences without external pressure.
What is autonomy?
Settings that influence a child indirectly, such as parents’ workplaces.
What is the exosystem?
The measurable results that occur after instruction.
What are outputs?
A teaching component where students observe and evaluate their own behavior.
What is self-observation or self-evaluation?
An approach that focuses on planning supports around an individual’s preferences, goals, and needs.
What is person-centered planning?
Two additional characteristics of self-determination described by Wehmeyer besides autonomy.
What are self-regulation and psychological empowerment?
The ecological level including laws, cultural values, and societal beliefs.
What is the macrosystem?
Information used to revise instruction and improve outcomes.
What is feedback?
A teaching component focused on speaking up for one’s own needs and rights.
What is self-advocacy?
The concept describing whether intervention outcomes are meaningful and important to the individual.
What is social validity?
The characteristic of self-determination that involves understanding one's strengths and limitations.
What is self-realization?
The system describing how development changes across time.
What is the chronosystem?
The general concept describing a group of interconnected parts working toward a goal.
What is a system?
A belief that success is influenced by one’s own actions rather than external factors.
What is internal locus of control?