Disability Is Not a Single-Selection Field

Every once in a while, in a job application or other online form, I run into a question about disability. This post was inspired by one I encountered today (January 16, 2025).

These questions are usually for self-disclosure about the type or category of disability. The problem I often notice with these questions is that they’re single-selection fields (i.e. a group of radio buttons) instead of multiple-selection fields (i.e. a group of checkboxes).

There might be a couple of reasons to limit the number of disabilities a person can select from lists like this. It’s a jarring thing to experience as a multiply disabled person. I have hearing, vision, cognitive, and mobility disabilities. Which disability option do I choose?? In many of these lists, more than half of the options apply to me.

It’s truly this simple: A lot of disabled people have multiple disabilities.

Stop making these fields single-select radio button groups when they need to be a group of checkboxes. When creating a form with disability questions, ask yourself the following for each question: “Can someone select more than one of these answers?” And it’s always good to double-check your answer with “Why?” or “Why not?”