Professor Dan Goodley

Critical disability studies

Dan is interested in theorising and challenging the conditions of disablism (the social, political, cultural and psycho-emotional exclusion of people with physical, sensory and/or cognitive impairments) and ableism (the contemporary ideals on which the able, autonomous, productive citizen is based). He draws on ideas from critical psychology, medical sociology, medical humanities, philosophy, sociology and education. A key intellectual project relates to exploring the ways in which critical disability studies can disrupt and change knowledge within education, medicine and science and technology.

Disability and Questions of the Human

Dan is interested in contesting narrow and orthodox conceptions of the human condition. Dan is working with colleagues in the School of Education and across the university to explore how we might understand the human in the 21st century in a time of technological and capitalist advance. He co-directs (with Professor Paul Martin, Sociological Studies) iHuman.

Current and a selection of previous research projects include:

• Leverhulme Trust  (£489,867). Depathologising research culture through disability and neurodivergence. (May 2026 - April 2029). PI: Dan Goodley, CoIs: Armineh Soorenian and Lauren White (University of Sheffield)

• Wellcome Trust Institutional Funding for Research Culture (£1,007,109).WAARC: Wellcome Anti-Ableist Research Culture. (May 2024 - April 2026). Lead CoI: Goodley. PI: Koen Lambert (VC). CoIs John Flint, Kirsty Liddiard, Antonios Ktenidis, Lauren White, Rebecca Lawthom, Katherine Runswick-Cole (University of Sheffield)

• Wellcome Trust Discretionary Award (£2.9 million). Disability Matters (September 2023 – September 2029). PI: Goodley. CoIs. Tanya Titchkosky (University of Toronto, Canada), Anita Ghai and Sandeep Singh (Ambedkar University Delhi, India), Meng Ee Wong (National Institute of Education/Nanyang Technological University, Singapore), Jackie Leach Scully (University of New South Wales, Australia).
• Economic and Social Research Council (£731,114). ES/W003406/1. Humanising the Healthcare Experiences of People with Learning Disabilities and/or Autism. PI: Goodley. Co-Is Katherine Runswick-Cole, Rebecca Lawthom (University of Sheffield), Rohit Shankar (University of Plymouth), Charlotte Lawthom (Aneurin Bevan University Health Board), Speakup Self-advocacy, Sheffield Voices, Sunderland People First, Barod. September 2022 - August 2025.
• EPSRC-funded UKRI Trustworthy Autonomous Systems Hub Pump Priming. (£147,414). Reimagining TAS with Disabled Young People. PI; Goodley. CoIs: Lauren Brown, Kirsty Liddiard, Alison Buxton, James Law (University of Sheffield), Radu Calinescu, Colin Paterson, Beverley Townsend, Chiara Picardi (University of York), Harry Gordon (Greenacre School). April 2022 - March 2023.
• University of Sheffield / Research England. (£17,000). Promoting Participatory Research in Ethics Applications with Marginalised Communities. PI: Goodley. CoI: Barry Gibson (Dentistry), Elizabeth Croot (Health and Related Research) Dr Esme Cleall (History, Pirashanthie Vivekananda-Schmidt (Medical Education), Parveen Ali (Nursing and Midwifery), Lindsay Unwin (Research Ethics & Integrity Manager, Secretary to the University Research Ethics Committee). April 2022 - July 2022
• Economic and Social Research Council (£443,000 – Grant No. ES/P001041/1). Life, Death, Disability and the Human: Living Life to the Fullest. PI: Goodley (University of Sheffield), Co-Is: Katherine Runswick Cole and Kirsty Liddiard (University of Sheffield). March 2017 - March 2020.
• Economic and Social Research Council (£425,000 – Grant No. RES-622-26-376). Big Society? Disabled People with Learning Disabilities and Civil Society. Principal Investigators; Dan Goodley (University of Sheffield), Co-Is: Katherine Runswick Cole (Manchester Metropolitan University), Toby Brandon (Northumbria University), Kelley Johnson (Bristol University). July 2013 - July 2015.
• SCOPE (£51,500). Resilience in the lives of disabled people across the life course. Principal Investigators; Dan Goodley and Katherine Runswick Cole (Manchester Metropolitan University). October 2011 – September 2012.
• British Association of Adoption and Fostering (BAAF) (£8,500). Researching placement parties and child adoption. Principal Investigators: Goodley and Katherine Runswick-Cole (Manchester Metropolitan University). October 2011 – September 2012.
• Economic and Social Research Council (£255, 000 – Grant No. RES-062-23-1138). Does every child matter, post Blair? The interconnections of disabled childhoods. Principal Investigators; Dan Goodley (Manchester Metropolitan University) and Janice McLaughlin (University of Newcastle); Research Fellow: Katherine Runswick Cole. September 2008 – October 2010.
• Prime Minister’s Initiative 2 / UK Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) Research Co-operation Programme (£40,000). Towards a culturally sensitive disability studies: Interconnections of disability studies in and across Malaysia and the UK. Principal Investigators: Dan Goodley and Rebecca Lawthom (Manchester Metropolitan University); Dr Ling How Kee and Mr Dolly Paul Carlo (Universiti Malaysia Sarawak, Malaysia). August 2008 - August 2010.
• European Social Fund (£425,000). Jobs not Charity. Dan Goodley (University of Sheffield) in association with Breakthrough UK Ltd and Greater Manchester Coalition of Disabled People. December 2003 – December 2005.
• Economic and Social Research Council (£300, 000 – Grant No. RES-000-23-0129). Parents, Professionals and Disabled Babies: Identifying Enabling Care Dan Goodley (University of Sheffield) and Janice McLaughlin (University of Newcastle). June 2003 – November 2006.
• Economic and Social Research Council (£85, 000 – Grant No. R000237697) Self-advocacy, Civil Rights and People with ‘Learning Difficulties. Dan Goodley (Bolton Institute) and Derrick Armstrong. September 1998 – June 2001.