A Research Agenda for Lived Experience and Disability Policy

Elgar Research Agendas outline the future of research in each area. Leading scholars are given the space to explore their subject in provocative ways and map out the potential directions of travel. They are relevant but also visionary.

This highly informative Research Agenda examines how lived experiences are understood and incorporated in disability policy. It explores various policymaking contexts, highlighting the opportunities and challenges that derive from centering lived experience.

Expert authors pair case studies from across Asia, Australia and North America with theoretical grounding to reorient policy thinking towards voices that have been traditionally excluded. Evaluating topics such as rural contexts, times of conflict and transport and health policy, chapters highlight how the voices of Indigenous populations, in particular, have been marginalised in policymaking. The authors powerfully demonstrate that lived expertise is a unique form of knowledge which should be valued and integral to all disability policy making and research.

This is a valuable resource for students and scholars of disability studies, sociology, and policy studies. Its insights into lived experience also make it prime readership for professionals and practitioners in the areas of social policy and social work.