Owen awarded NSF grant

Inclusion of individuals with disabilities in the workplace has remained a significant challenge in the US despite multiple legislative initiatives in recent decades. This can be attributed to the fact that existing approaches are task-centric and individuals with disabilities are only employed if they can meet the job requirements with reasonable accommodations. This Future of Work at the Human Technology Frontier (FW-HTF) funded research project adopts a human-centric approach to disability inclusion by enhancing individual abilities through technology and training. Using the work context of sewing, the research focuses on the assessment of individual abilities, task and workstation design, and workflow optimization to facilitate inclusion of individuals with disabilities. Through industrial partnerships, these solutions will be applied and evaluated in a real-world apparel production-line environment and scaled to other work contexts. The overarching goal is to build a dynamic workplace that is more inclusive, productive, and economically viable; greater inclusion of a significant but untapped workforce will lead to increased global competitiveness. In addition to scientific and technological advances, this research will provide unique, multidisciplinary training opportunities to graduate students in areas spanning human abilities, engineering technologies, and workflow management.

The main objective of the research is to address a challenging societal problem, that of disability inclusion in the workplace. In a paradigm shift from the traditional approach, the research adopts an abilities-first approach that focuses on individual abilities rather than disabilities. Through multi-disciplinary collaboration, this research will create new knowledge frameworks by (i) assessing individual abilities (sensorimotor, cognitive, and psychological readiness) and their fit to the task, (ii) augmenting individual abilities using technology (robotics and augmented-reality) such that individuals with diverse abilities can have similar levels of performance, and (iii) analyzing workflow (value stream maps) that takes into account teams of individuals with diverse abilities to increase participation and team productivity. An overarching theme is real-world implementation and testing through collaborations with industry partners to create solutions that are feasible, effective, economically viable, and scalable. The creation of such dynamic workplaces that are inclusive of disabled individuals will advance fundamental understanding of job and work design (Future Work), skill assessment and training (Future Worker), and creation of human-technology partnerships that can revolutionize industry (Future Technology).

(Date Posted: 2024-01-17)