Assistive technology including wearables, have a positive impact towards changing the lives of people with disabilities. Advances in glass, electronics, sensors, and a wide range of digital devices are substantially improving how people with disabilities (PWD) navigate the world, and allow greater possibilities for PWD who are competing in today's job market. This chapter explores the following topics related to disabilities: Historical developments changing the lives of people with physical and sensory disabilities, laws pertaining to technology access, technological advances in wearables for individuals who are deaf, blind, paralyzed, or other mobility and speech impairments, socio-cultural and vocational implications of wearables for individuals who are deaf, deaf-blind or speech impaired, and the applications needed for wearables to meet the on-the-job demands.

During a phenomenological narrative study regarding the perspectives of leadership among women who are both Native and Deaf, a portion of the data collection focused on visual art as a means of interpreting what leadership meant to the participants. Participants produced visual imagery to impart their ways of knowing as women who negotiated their paths between two distinct cultures. Themes of identification with indigenous art forms, spirituality, and evolving self-identities were shared, with the participants leading the development of their artistic renderings.  The participant-created visual arts highlight the significance of non-verbal modes of inquiry within Indigenous and Deaf populations.Keywords: Indigenous; Native American; Deaf; Women; Art Inquiry; Identity

Assistive technology including wearables, have a positive impact towards changing the lives of people with disabilities. Advances in glass, electronics, sensors, and a wide range of digital devices are substantially improving how people with disabilities (PWD) navigate the world, and allow greater possibilities for PWD who are competing in today's job market. This chapter explores the following topics related to disabilities: Historical developments changing the lives of people with physical and sensory disabilities, laws pertaining to technology access, technological advances in wearables for individuals who are deaf, blind, paralyzed, or other mobility and speech impairments, socio-cultural and vocational implications of wearables for individuals who are deaf, deaf-blind or speech impaired, and the applications needed for wearables to meet the on-the-job demands.

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