Jeanne Jackson, Ph.D., OTR, FAOTA

Because as occupational therapists, our fundamental goal is to help people embrace life through doing, I am interested in understanding how diverse groups of people who may not fit within the particular social-historical constraints of their community (i.e. people who are disabled, gay, lesbian, older, or poor etc.) struggle to live out their personal vision of a meaningful life through what they do. Early in my research career, I investigated how community-dwelling elders maintained a meaningful existence through the patterns of their occupations, the symbolic meaning attributed to those occupations, and the creatively improvised adaptive strategies they used. This research contributed to my participation as a co-investigator with Dr. Clark on what is now referred to as the "Well Elderly Study." I helped to design the occupational science-based treatment protocol which enabled the elders to better understand and appreciate the importance of meaningful occupations in their lives as well as teach them to select and perform occupations that contribute to a healthy and satisfying lifestyle.
My interest in how diverse lifestyles are expressed in occupations led me to study how lesbians, with and without disabilities, weave together their identities with occupations. I studied the day-to-day occupations of lesbian women and found they often created innovative occupations (such as a "Mom's Party" and a "Lesbian Baby Shower") to honor their lesbian identities and build bridges between themselves and their family, friends, and co-workers. Researching their perceptions about treatment and health care settings, I found that homophobic experiences marginalized some patients and endangered their ability to benefit from therapy while at the same time non-homophobic experiences, which honored clients' lesbian identities, enhanced therapy. Using my research as a model, students have set out to better understand the challenges Asian occupational therapists encounter in their work setting. I look forward to continuing my research about the powerful ways occupation becomes central to a person's feelings of "authenticity" and works as a medium through which people connect to others from all backgrounds. I am also excited about the idea of teaching more about the needs of clients from diverse and marginalized cultures and how to create inclusive occupational therapy settings as well as overseeing continued student research/projects in this area.

Biography
Jeanne Jackson is an occupational scientist with extensive clinical experience in traditional hospital settings and in designing occupation-based programs in community setting such as high schools and retirement homes. She received her Bachelors Degree in Occupational Therapy from San Jose State and she received her Masters in Occupational Therapy and her Ph.D. in Occupational Science as well as a Certificate in Gender Studies from USC. Her research focuses on the symbolic aspects of occupation and how discrimination in the health care system compromises the provision of occupational therapy services for minorities. In addition to memberships in occupational therapy organizations, she belongs to the Los Angeles Museum of Tolerance and the Southern Law Coalition. She speaks internationally at schools, professional organizations, and hospitals and is currently co-investigator on a research grant that addresses the occupational patterns of people with spinal cord injuries who are at risk pressure sores and months-long hospital stays and recovery. She has published her work in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy and Occupational Science Journal as well as the Journal of American Medical Association and gerontology journals.

Selected Publications
Lifestyle Redesign: Implementing the Well Elderly Study

Research
The USC Well Elderly Study

Daily Living Context and Pressure Sores in Consumers with Spinal Cord Injuries.

Lifestyle Redesign for Pressure Ulcer Prevention in Spinal Cord Injury