Intellectual and Developmental Disability Research: Success Through Inclusion and Equity.

Emerson et al. (2023) wrote a think-piece, not an experiment.

They looked at how intellectual and developmental disability (IDD) research is usually run.

The authors asked: whose voices get heard when we design studies?

The paper says most IDD studies still follow a "dominant-culture model."

That means researchers outside the disability community set the questions, run the tests, and write the papers.

The team argues this keeps power uneven and leaves out people with IDD and their families.

Johnson (2023) and Bonney et al. (2023) make the same point in the same journal year.

All three papers call the problem "epistemic injustice" — big words for "we ignore their knowledge."

Jackson et al. (2025) picks up the baton and shows how to fix it: add real supports so people with IDD can be co-researchers, not just subjects.

Bogenschutz et al. (2024) turns the idea into six concrete research goals focused on social inclusion.

Together these pieces move the field from "we should be fair" to "here’s the roadmap."

If you write grants, IRB forms, or train staff, pause before you call someone a "subject." Ask: could this person help write the question? E et al. remind us that equity starts at the first study meeting, not in the discussion section. Try adding an easy-read consent and a paid advisory board spot — small steps that shift power.