Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

On the Economic Impact of Innovation and Technological Transformation for People with Mobility Limitations

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Advances in Exercise and Health for People With Mobility Limitations

  • 620 Accesses

Abstract

Recently, there have been numerous innovations and advancements in technology to improve the health of people with mobility limitations. These changes are expected to enhance their living standards leading to potential employment opportunities and to improve the overall economics for them, their supporters, and their communities. To address those changes, we looked into assistive technologies and the surrounding technical improvements around those devices to address their economic impacts. The advances include the progress with information and communication technologies, brain-controlled interactions, and connectivity of all these devices or the Internet of Things to provide solutions for these populations to improve their abilities for better employment opportunities to create more value in the economy. Although there are many promising devices, communication tools, interconnections, and networks to allow the disabled to enhance their livelihood, yet there are also many barriers and challenges to consider to achieve economic benefits to the full extent.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 119.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Abbreviations

AT:

Assistive technology

AP:

Assistive product

BCIs:

brain computer interfaces

DFID:

Department of International Development

GDP:

Gross domestic product

ICT:

Information and communication technology

IoT:

Internet of Things

ISO:

International Standard Organization

OECD:

Organization of Economic Development

WHO:

World Health Organization

References

  • Asian Development Bank. (2005). Disability brief: Identifying and addressing the needs of disabled people. © Asian Development Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/11540/4878. License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.

  • Broadband Commission for Digital Development, G3ict, IDA, ITU, Microsoft, The Telecentre.org Foundation, and UNESCO. (2013). The ICT opportunity for a disability-inclusive development framework. http://g3ict.org/resource_center/publications_and_reports/p/productCategory_whitepapers/id_297

  • Burkhauser, R. V., & Daly, M. C. (2011). The declining work and welfare of people with disabilities: What went wrong and a strategy for change. Washington, DC: AEI Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carter, K., Lewis, R., & Ward, T. (2016). Improving care delivery to individuals with special or supportive care needs. McKinsey & Company. Detroit, Michigan

    Google Scholar 

  • Chan, M., Campo, E., Estève, D., & Fourniols, J. Y. (2009). Smart homes – Current features and future perspectives. Maturitas, 64(2), 90–97.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheatham, L. P. (2012). Effects of Internet use on well-being among adults with physical disabilities: A review. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, 7(3), 181–188.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cutler, D. M. (2001). The reduction in disability among the elderly. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 98(12), 6546–6547.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • DFID (Department for International Development). (2000, February). Poverty, disability and development, p. 4.

    Google Scholar 

  • Disability and Development. Global situation for people with disabilities. Retrieved from http://www.hiproweb.org/fileadmin/cdroms/Handicap_Developpement/www/en_page22.html

  • Domingo, M. C. (2012). An overview of the Internet of Things for people with disabilities. Journal of Network and Computer Applications, 35(2), 584–596.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eid, N. (2015, November 29). Accessibility and future of Internet of Things. Blog Post. Retrieved from http://community.telecentre.org/profiles/blogs/accessibility-and-the-future-of-the-internet-of-things

  • Etherington, D., & Ingold, J. (2012). Welfare to work and the inclusive labour market: A comparative study of activation policies for disability and long-term sickness benefit claimants in the UK and Denmark. Journal of European Social Policy, 22, 30–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grider, J., & Wydick, B. (2016). Wheels of fortune: The economic impacts of wheelchair provision in Ethiopia. Journal of Development Effectiveness, 8(1), 44–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Grübler, G., & Hildt, E. (Eds.). (2014). Brain-computer interfaces in their ethical, social and cultural contexts. The International Library of Ethics, Law and Technology, 12. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8996-7_2, © Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hussein, A., Adda, M., Atieh, M., & Fahs, W. (2014). Smart home design for disabled people based on neural networks. The 5th international conference on emerging ubiquitous systems and pervasive networks (EUSP N-2014). Procedia Computer Science, 37, 117–126.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krahn, G. L., Walker, D. K., & Correa-De-Araujo, R. (2015). Persons with disabilities as an unrecognized health disparity population. American Journal of Public Health, 105(S2), S198–S206.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kraus, L. (2017). 2016 disability statistics annual report. Durham: University of New Hampshire.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lee, I., & Lee, K. (2015). The Internet of Things (IoT): Applications, investments, and challenges for enterprises. Business Horizons, 58(4), 431–440.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leeb, R., Perdikis, S., Tonin, L., Biasiucci, A., Tavella, M., Creatura, M., Molina, A., Al-Khodairy, A., Carison, T., & Millán, J. D. (2013). Transferring brain-controlled computer interface beyond the laboratory: Successful application control for motor-disabled users. Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, 59(2), 121–132.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li, W., & Sellers, C. (2009). Improving assistive technology economics for people with disabilities: Harnessing the voluntary and education sectors. Science and technology for humanity (TIC-STH), 2009 IEEE Toronto international conference, pp. 789–794. © Copyright 2010 IEEE.

    Google Scholar 

  • Macdonald, S. J., & Clayton, J. (2013). Back to the future, disability and the digital divide. Disability & Society, 28(5), 702–718.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manzoor, M., & Vimarlund, V. (2017). E-services for the social inclusion of people with disabilities: A literature review. Technology and Disability, 29(1–2), 15–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Metts, R. (2004). Disability and development, background paper for the World Bank, Banque Mondiale, p. 32. http://siteresources.worldbank.org/DISABILITY/Resources/280658-1172606907476/mettsBGpaper.pdf

  • Millán, J. d. R., Rupp, R., Müller-Putz, G. R., Murray-Smith, R., Giugliemma, C., Tangermann, M., et al. (2010). Combining brain–computer interfaces and assistive technologies: State-of-the-art and challenges. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 4, 161. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2010.00161.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Mizunoya, S., & Mitra, S. (2012, May). Is there a disability gap in employment rates in developing countries? Social Science Research Network. http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2127568

  • Nam, S.-J., & Park, E.-Y. (2017). The effects of the smart environment on the information divide experienced by people with disabilities. Disability and Health Journal, 10(2), 257–263.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2017). The promise of assistive technology to enhance activity and work participation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. https://doi.org/10.17226/24740.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • OECD. (2001). Understanding the digital divide. OECD.

    Google Scholar 

  • OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development). (2010). Sickness, disability and work: Breaking the barriers. A synthesis of findings across OECD countries. Retrieved from http://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/social-issues-migration-health/sickness-disability-and-work-breaking-the-barriers_9789264088856-en

  • Raja, D. S. (2016). Bridging the disability divide through digital technologies. Background paper for the World Development report.

    Google Scholar 

  • Raja, S., Imaizumi, S., Kelly, T., Narimatsu, J., & Paradi-Guilford, C. (2013). How information and communication technologies could help expand employment opportunities. Washington, DC: World Bank https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/16243/809770WP0Conne00Box379814B00PUBLIC0.pdf?sequence=1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reis, C. I., & Maximiano, M. d. S. (2016). Internet of Things and advanced application in healthcare. IGI Global

    Google Scholar 

  • Rupp, R., Kleih, S. C., Leeb, R., Millan, J. d. R., Kübler, A., & Müller-Putz, G. R. (n.d.) Brain–computer interfaces and assistive technology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rupp R., Kleih S.C., Leeb R., del R. Millan J., Kübler A., Müller-Putz G.R. (2014) Brain–Computer Interfaces and Assistive Technology. In: Grübler G., Hildt E. (eds) Brain-Computer-Interfaces in their ethical, social and cultural contexts. The International Library of Ethics, Law and Technology, vol 12. Springer, Dordrecht.

    Google Scholar 

  • Social Analysis and Disability, A Guidance Note, Banque Mondiale, 2007, p. 1. http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EXTSOCIALDEV/Resources/3177394-1175102311639/3615048-1175607868848/SocialAnalysis&Disability-Full.pdf

  • The ICT Opportunity for a Disability_Inclusive Development. (2013, September). Retrieved from the ICT opportunity for a disability-inclusive development … – ITU.

    Google Scholar 

  • White Paper. (2015, July). Internet of Things: New promises for persons with disabilities a G3ict business case white paper series researched in cooperation with AT&T.

    Google Scholar 

  • WHO Report. (2011). World report on disability. Retrieved from https://www.unicef.org/protection/World_report_on_disability_eng.pdf

  • Wolpaw, J. R. (2013). Chapter 6 – Brain-computer interfaces. Handbook of Clinical Neurology, 110, 67–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wolpaw, J. R., Birbaumer, N., McFarland, D. J., Pfurtscheller, G., & Vaughan, T. M. (2002). Brain–computer interfaces for communication and control. Clinical Neurophysiology, 113(6), 767–791.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • World Bank. (2013). Improving accessibility to transport for People with Limited Mobility (PLM): A practical guidance note. Washington, DC: World Bank Group http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/575221468278939280/Improving-accessibility-to-transport-for-People-with-Limited-Mobility-PLM-a-practical-guidance-note.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pfeiffer University, Morrisville, NC, USA

    Nur M. Onvural

Authors
  1. Nur M. Onvural
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nur M. Onvural .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Health Administration, Pfeiffer University, Misenheimer, NC, USA

    David Hollar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Onvural, N.M. (2019). On the Economic Impact of Innovation and Technological Transformation for People with Mobility Limitations. In: Hollar, D. (eds) Advances in Exercise and Health for People With Mobility Limitations. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-98452-0_8

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-98452-0_8

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-98451-3

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-98452-0

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation