The Correlation of Discrimination and Violence with Life Satisfaction, Happiness and Personal Well-being among Persons with Physical and Sensory Disabilites

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to explore the frequency of experiences of discrimination and violence among persons with various types of disabilities, investigate the correlation of these topics with particular sociodemographic characteristics and with the level of happiness and life satisfaction, and identify which one of the various personal well-being domains is particularly connected with discrimination and violence. The empirical study was conducted among 684 persons with various types of disabilities in the city of Zagreb, Croatia. The results indicate a high percentage of experienced discrimination and violence in all groups of respondents, especially the deaf and those hard of hearing. Both topics are negatively correlated with the level of personal happiness, life satisfaction and all domains of personal well-being. It was found that the frequency of these experiences is related to younger age, and to lower income and poor economic status. The results point to the need for a multi-disciplinary and comprehensive engagement on reducing discrimination and violence over persons with disabilities.