Using the quality of life framework to operationalize and assess the CRPD articles and the Sustainable Development Goals

Abstract

This article describes how rights, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the quality of life (QOL) framework are closely interrelated. Although legislation can be used as a tool for the practical application of QOL principles, QOL assessment information is required to further develop legislation and monitor the fulfillment of laws, policies, and the SDGs. A validated QOL model, which provides a set of concepts that can be one useful way for understanding and assessing QOL, can also function to assess many of the rights and goals promulgated in the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) and in the SDGs. This article illustrates the overlap between the CRPD, SDGs and QOL using the #Rights4MeToo Scale, a new measurement instrument for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The instrument's value lies in its potential to: (a) raise awareness about the rights enshrined in the CRPD; (b) design, implement, and evaluate the effectiveness of interventions aimed at facilitating the exercise of those rights and the achievement of the SDGs; and (c) ultimately improve the QOL of people with IDD.