Page No 251-258
Hari Prasad
Village Academy of Washington, USA
This study on the personal experiences of adults with total blindness in Kerala was
intended to advance knowledge about their coping skills and resilience in the face of
constant adversity. Sixteen adults (8 men and 8 women) who were totally blind for at
least 20 years participated in this study. Content analysis of the data collected from the
participants, including the congenitally blind and the illiterate, showed that they had normal
functional skills. The coping skills in the adventitious blind participants depended on their
willingness to unconditionally accept the disability and the level of independence they
showed before becoming blind. Themes such as high unemployment, social stigma, bodily
injuries, and gender gap also evolved from the data analysis. Suggestions for improving
the lives of the blind population in Kerala were also offered by the participants, such as
increasing the monthly government pension and educating visually-impaired children in
exclusive blind schools instead of regular schools. Making government jobs reserved
for the visually impaired available and increasing the vocational opportunities for women
were also suggested by the participants. .
.