Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) work to provide inclusive services to children with both disabilities and medical illnesses and SLPs services often include use of children’s books. Further, research indicates that representation within children's books can shape identity and feelings of belonging. The purpose of this project was to understand the current literature related to representation of illness and disability in children’s books. To achieve this goal, we located and reviewed published research articles on this topic. We analyzed how they defined illness and disability, the specific types that were included in their analyses, and how they completed the analyses. Findings revealed varied definitions of illness and disability situated within both the medical model and social model of disability and illness. Additional findings revealed a range of methods of studying representation, including descriptive categorization and in-depth qualitative analysis of representation. These findings will inform the next phase of our research, which will be designed to better understand how SLPs conceptualize illness and disability and how this influences their selection of children’s books for use in their practices.
