Vocational Training as an Effort to Enhance the Capacity of Persons with Physical Disabilities: A Literature Review

Abstract

Persons with physical disabilities in Indonesia continue to face significant barriers to education and employment, driven by social stigma, limited accessibility, and a lack of relevant skills. Vocational training has been widely promoted as a strategy to build the capacity of persons with physical disabilities so that they can compete in the labor market or establish independent enterprises. This study employs a literature review method, drawing on articles, books, scientific journals, and official documents obtained mainly through Google Scholar, to synthesize existing findings on the role of vocational training in improving the capacity of persons with physical disabilities. The results show that vocational training programs—covering skills such as batik making, macrame, flower arrangement, knitting, and sewing—enhance participants' motor skills, creativity, and ability to follow work instructions, while also strengthening psychosocial aspects such as self-confidence, social skills, persistence, and self-motivation. The learning-by-doing method was found to be particularly effective, as it allows participants to grasp material gradually according to their individual conditions and abilities. Vocational training was also found to open opportunities for independent entrepreneurship. However, implementation still faces obstacles, including differences in participants' physical conditions, fluctuating concentration and emotional states, limited facilities, and the need for intensive mentoring. This study concludes that vocational training plays an important role in strengthening the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of persons with physical disabilities, and that its effectiveness depends heavily on appropriate teaching methods, supportive facilities, and an inclusive learning environment.