Objective:

To advocate for an explicit intersectional lens in research involving people with intellectual disabilities (ID) in South Africa, emphasizing the need for intersectional methodologies to address how identity categories and structural inequities converge to exacerbate disadvantage.

Approach:

• Research Design: Conducted a secondary analysis of a doctoral thesis on respite care for persons with ID in South Africa, utilizing mixed-methods including interviews, policy analysis, and a national survey.
• Analytical Framework: Re-analyzed the thesis data using framework analysis informed by intersectional theory to uncover intersections of privilege and marginalization.

Key Findings:

• People with ID and their caregivers face barriers to accessing quality respite care, impacting their health and wellbeing.
• The experiences of poor, black individuals with ID and their female caregivers are shaped by persistent racial disadvantage and structural inequities.
• Key factors include socio-economic inequality, geographic disparities, gendered care responsibilities, ableism, disablism, disability hierarchies, and cultural concerns.

Interpretation:

The findings illustrate the compounded disadvantages faced by people with ID and their caregivers due to intersecting identities and structural inequities, highlighting the need for intersectional methodologies in future research.

Limitations:

• The secondary analysis was limited by the inability to return to the full data set of the original study.

Conclusion:

The study emphasizes the need for intersectional methodologies in future research on intellectual disabilities in South Africa.