A Theoretical Model for the Implementation of Social Sustainability in the Synthesis of Tourism, Disability Studies, and Special-Needs Education

Abstract

This paper deals with the study of disability science, special-needs education, and psychology of special needs in the context of tourism. It is rare to find a link between these research areas in the literature. Accessible tourism has attracted widespread research interest in recent decades, but the number of studies focusing on tourism in the fields of disability studies, special-needs education, and psychology of special needs is very limited. Although there is growing literature on accessible tourism and related topics, the development of the research field is uneven, as most research focuses on specific subareas without considering the context of the whole spectrum of the topic. The interdisciplinary research aims to explore the situations of people with disabilities in terms of their participation in tourism. The data collected will be used to analyse the supply and demand side of tourism from a specific perspective. Among the external environmental impacts, the issue of sustainability will be highlighted, which will be addressed from a societal perspective by analysing the sustainable development goals (SDGs) related to the topic. The study includes a theoretical analysis through the processing of secondary sources, linking the fields of tourism, disability studies, special-needs education, and psychology of special needs, with the potential of social sustainability and the achievement of the SDGs. The paper presents a new model that illustrates the potential for achieving social sustainability from the supply and demand side of tourism. The model can be valuable, not only for those who want to extend their research into this new field, but also for tourism policy makers. The study also identifies key research questions on this topic that merit theoretical and empirical exploration in the future.