‘What Works’ in Disability and Employment
A special issue of Societies (ISSN 2075-4698). This special issue belongs to the section "Disabled People/People with Disabilities (Non-Medical Coverage)".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 1 February 2026 | Viewed by 532
Special Issue Editors
2. Centre for Inclusive Employment, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia
Interests: social policy; employment equity and diversity; people with disability; poverty, inclusivity and wellbeing
2. Centre for Inclusive Employment, Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC 3122, Australia
Interests: social policy; employment equity and diversity; people with disability
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
This Special Issue will focus on ‘what works’ in driving successful employment for people with disabilities, including initiatives at the policy, funding/investment, program design, and practice levels. A substantial body of evidence has been built in relation to the design of employment supports or services, with these including individual placement and support, supported employment, customised employment (and its elements of discovery, job carving, and customization), supported internships, social enterprise (including work-integrated or job-focused social enterprises), and school-to-work transition. There is also a body of emerging evidence in relation to employer engagement strategies, as well as strategies and approaches for building the capability of employing organisations to offer inclusive employment. Alongside these is research focusing on reasonable accommodaions in the workplace and the use of emerging, and established, assistive technologies to overcome barriers to employment. There is also a limited body of work in relation to the policy and funding environment necessary to foster ‘what works’ in order to support the employment of people with disabilities. In this Issue, we seek to capture the latest research on these and related topics to demonstrate ‘what works’ and the ingredients necessary for success.
Of particular interest is ‘what works’ for people with disabilities, who, for various reasons, are furthest from the labour market. In many countries, this includes people with intellectual disabilities and people with psychosocial disabilities, as well as those with additional intersectional experiences (gender, ethnicity, Indigeneity, identity, and sexuality diversity). We also welcome submissions about ‘promising practice’. This focus includes single case-study evaluations and research with a focus on describing replicable models, showing how these echo or differ from the existing evidence of effective design elements.
Contributions must fall under one of the three categories of papers (article, conceptual paper, or review) of the journal and address the topic of the Special Issue.
Prof. Dr. Erin Wilson
Dr. Jenny Crosbie
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as conceptual papers are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Societies is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- disability employment
- work
- inclusive employment
- inclusive workplaces
- social enterprise
- employment service
- policy
- employment program
- diversity
- reasonable accommodation
- workplace adjustment
Benefits of Publishing in a Special Issue
- Ease of navigation: Grouping papers by topic helps scholars navigate broad scope journals more efficiently.
- Greater discoverability: Special Issues support the reach and impact of scientific research. Articles in Special Issues are more discoverable and cited more frequently.
- Expansion of research network: Special Issues facilitate connections among authors, fostering scientific collaborations.
- External promotion: Articles in Special Issues are often promoted through the journal's social media, increasing their visibility.
- Reprint: MDPI Books provides the opportunity to republish successful Special Issues in book format, both online and in print.
Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.
