Abstract

In transitional societies like Vietnam, children with disabilities have a harder time reaching their potential to meet their physical and social needs. The problem lies not in a lack of access to available choices, but in the poverty of choices available to them. Their needs remain unmet, turning them into “handicapped” individuals whose existence is entirely dependent on families and societies. Furthermore, the poverty of choices deprives their family members of the precious opportunities to test the efficacy of their actions addressing the demands of life with disabilities. The absence of efficacy-test of action, in turn, leads many to overlook the poverty of choices. The vicious circle underlies the wellbeing of disabled children.