The World Health Organization’s International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF), and in particular the central concept of functioning, has introduced a paradigm shift into health sciences. Functioning captures what individuals actually do and can achieve in their lives in light of their health condition. In terms of health care, rehabilitation can be understood as that health strategy the primary aim of which is to optimize functioning in light of an underlying disease, injury or other health problem. Rehabilitation is a universal health strategy applicable to everyone across the lifespan who experiences a disability.

The term ‘disability’ is most commonly used as an identity, and ‘persons with disabilities’ are a disadvantaged minority group. In this usage, disability is linked to a social and political agenda that characterizes the social disadvantage as being one of social exclusion, marginalization and the denial of human rights. The remedy are targeted social programs designed for inclusion and equal participation in all areas of human life.

But does this mean that the universal aim of rehabilitation to optimize functioning for anyone with a disability, and the targeted human rights aim of social inclusion linked to the minority group of persons with disabilities, are in tension with each other? This Research Topic seeks to explore this apparent conflict: Are the global agendas that call for disability-inclusive health and social systems somehow at odds with the global call to strengthen rehabilitation to meet the future functioning needs of everyone?

The Topic’s overall theme is related to the following lead article published in Frontiers in Science: The human functioning revolution: implications for health systems and sciences

The goal is to gather innovative research, clinical practices, community strategies, and policy approaches that improve the lived experience of persons with disabilities, beyond clinical recovery. We seek contributions that demonstrate how rehabilitation can be seen as a catalyst for social inclusion, promoting equitable access to opportunities in education, employment, community life, and decision-making for all. By integrating conceptual, clinical, social, and systemic perspectives, this collection aims to advance a comprehensive understanding of how functioning can be optimized and inclusion meaningfully realized.

We welcome contributions that explore functioning, participation, and inclusion across clinical, community, and policy dimensions. Submissions may address, but are not limited to:

- Conceptual and ethical perspectives on disability, autonomy, and participation

- Clinical innovations and rehabilitation models that prioritize functioning goals

- Community-based rehabilitation, social participation, assistive technologies, and universal design

- Measurement tools and methodologies for assessing functioning, inclusion, and life outcomes

- Policy frameworks, health systems integration, and disability-inclusive practices

Manuscripts may include Original Research, Clinical Trials, Systematic Reviews, Case Reports, Policy and Practice Reviews, Perspectives, or Brief Research Reports. Interdisciplinary and co-produced works with persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged, as well as studies from diverse cultural and geographic contexts.

Are you interested in contributing a manuscript to this Research Topic?

Can the Goals of Rehabilitation and Inclusion Be Reconciled?