Call for papers: Information Technology for People with Disabilities: Expanding Human Frontiers

Call for papers: Information Technology for People with Disabilities: Expanding Human Frontiers

A special issue of International Journal of Social and Humanistic Computing

The rationale of this special issue is strongly grounded in the societal needs for a world with special care for people with disabilities. While disability has many definitions, in our approach it is treated as a special characteristic, a special competence that just requires a special treatment.

Given the significant societal value of this special issue, we invite researchers, policy makers, academics, and practitioners to contribute to the dialogue on how we can support new frontiers for people with disabilities. We are aiming to promote sound propositions and applied approaches towards better conditions for living, working, learning and inclusion of people with disabilities/people with special competencies in our society.

The evolution in research and applied technologies towards the support of people with disabilities in the past few last years has been considerable. New technologies, fresh ideas and significant development in hardware, software and advanced communications, bring together researchers from various domains.

Given the significance of the special issue theme, three significant objectives formulate the justification of the special issue:

1. The need to investigate the "soft" and "hard" aspects of strategies that contribute to the humanistic vision of living, learning, working, entertaining conditions for people with disabilities.
2. The need to provide a sustainable worldwide knowledge society vision based on collaboration, knowledge and learning for all and especially for people with disabilities.
3. The need to anchor government policies in scientific evidence and community debate for key societal issues.
4. The need to investigate the key priorities of an action plan for the adoption of information technology for people with disabilities.

The special issue aims at helping in communicating and disseminating the vision of a better world for people with disabilities through specific priorities and actions for government and/or NGO policies. The issue is intended to initiate a dialogue between the government and the research community based on a well-defined context.

Topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The role of technology in ensuring full participation
• Accessibility
• Assistive technology
• Assistive technology and augmentative communication
• Assistive technology and the individualised education plan (IEP)
• Information technology for improving living, learning, working, entertaining conditions of disabled people
• Information technology for improved health conditions
• Policies and strategies for IT adoption and assistive technology
• Assistive technology for the frail and elderly
• Assistive technology with cognitive disabilities emphasis
• Assistive media
• Internet and people with disabilities
• Web 2.0 and new opportunities for inclusion
• Technology enhanced learning and e-learning systems for people with disabilities
• Networks of support for disabled people
• Universal design and human computer interaction approaches for disabled people
• Information technology for inclusion
• Social and human networks

Important Dates

1-2 Page Abstract: 30 March 2007
Submission of manuscripts: 15 May 2007
Notification to authors: 15 June 2007
Final versions due: 15 July 2007