Gregor Wolbring

About

Gregor Wolbring is a leading scholar at the intersection of disability studies, emerging technologies, and social justice. His research critically examines how robotics, neuro-enhancement, and brain-machine interfaces shape—and are shaped by—societal expectations of ability. Wolbring’s work consistently challenges the narratives surrounding technology and disability, revealing how innovations like social robots often embed ableist assumptions. For instance, his highly cited study on social robots and disability service workers (67 citations) exposed the overlooked perspectives of those who would implement these technologies. He has also audited the impact of neuro-advancements on health equity (15 citations) and deconstructed the imagery of disabled people within robotics research (24 citations). Across his body of work, Wolbring employs frameworks like anticipatory governance and ability expectation theory to forecast how technologies might entrench or disrupt existing inequalities. His contributions have been pivotal in shifting the discourse from techno-solutionism to a more nuanced, equity-focused analysis of science and technology. With over 200 publications and consistent citation across fields, Wolbring remains an essential voice for anyone studying the ethical and social dimensions of emerging technologies.

Research Focus

Key Achievements

Top Papers

1. 1
   Social Robots: Views of Staff of a Disability Service Organization

   67 citations · 2014
2. 2
   Employment, Disabled People and Robots: What Is the Narrative in the Academic Literature and Canadian Newspapers?

   36 citations · 2016
3. 3
   Imagery of Disabled People within Social Robotics Research

   24 citations · 2012
4. 4
   Social Robots, Brain Machine Interfaces and Neuro/Cognitive Enhancers: Three Emerging Science and Technology Products through the Lens of Technology Acceptance Theories, Models and Frameworks

   22 citations · 2013
5. 5
   Social Robots

   18 citations · 2015
6. 6
   Impact of robotics and human enhancement on occupation: what does it mean for rehabilitation?

   17 citations · 2019
7. 7
   Home Care Technology Through an Ability Expectation Lens

   16 citations · 2014
8. 8
   Auditing the Impact of Neuro-Advancements on Health Equity

   15 citations · 2021
9. 9
   Emerging Therapeutic Enhancement Enabling Health Technologies and Their Discourses: What Is Discussed within the Health Domain?

   15 citations · 2013
10. 10
    Social Robotics through an Anticipatory Governance Lens

    14 citations · 2014

Key Collaborators

Contact & Links