The Three Praxes Framework - A Thematic Review and Map of Social Accessibility Research

2026-03-08

AI Summary

This study addresses the persistent fragmentation of social accessibility research across three distinct practice domains—artifacts, ecosystems, and epistemologies—which has hindered the translation of academic insights into tangible improvements in the lives of disabled people and may even reinforce existing barriers. Drawing on constructivist grounded theory, the authors conducted thematic coding and theoretical modeling of 90 carefully selected papers from a corpus of 605 publications spanning 2011 to 2025. They propose, for the first time, a “triple-practice framework” that integrates these domains and incorporates two cross-cutting stances: temporal orientation and stakeholder focus. This framework elucidates the structural roots of disciplinary silos and advocates for a closed-loop cycle in which disabled people’s lived experiences drive material practices, theory generation, and systemic transformation, thereby facilitating effective knowledge flow between scholarship and real-world action.

Technology Category

• Humans and AI: AI for Accessibility
• Application Domains: Humanities & Computational Social Science
• Cognitive Modeling & Cognitive Systems: Social Cognition And Interaction

Application Category

• Responsible Web: Consent frameworks and practices on the web
• Security and Privacy: Data transparency and provenance
• Social Networks and Social Media: Media and governance, opinion dynamics, filter bubbles, polarization

Abstract

Research in social accessibility aims to improve the lives of disabled people across diverse abilities and experiences by assisting with communication, relationships, and ecosystems of access. We seek to understand this intersectional body of work through analyzing social accessibility research from 2011 to 2025. Through constructivist grounded theory analysis of 90 papers (curated from 605), we develop the Three Praxes Framework: three sites of practice Artifact (constructive), Ecosystem (relational), and Epistemology (theoretical) - two cross-cutting stances toward change (Temporal Orientation and Stakeholder Focus) - and one reflexive cycle modeling how insights can flow between praxes. Our analysis reveals these praxes operate largely in isolation, risking that insights remain academic exercises while assistive technologies reinforce existing barriers. We call on the field to realize a cycle where disabled people's lived experiences shape material realities, material practice generates theoretical knowledge, and both transform ecosystems of access.

Problem

• social accessibility
• disability
• assistive technology
• intersectionality
• knowledge translation

Innovation

• Three Praxes Framework
• social accessibility
• constructivist grounded theory
• disability studies
• reflexive cycle