Research Statement
Informed by feminist and disability scholarship, Dr. Kelly’s program of research encompasses two areas:
1. the politics of care, explored through qualitative studies of continuing care, with particular expertise in ‘directly-funded,’ or ‘self-managed home care’ in Canada; and,
2. Canadian disability movements, in particular highlighting arts-based and radical mobilizing and the shifting landscape for non-profit disability organizations.
Dr. Kelly is published in journals such as Health & Social Care in the Community, Health Reform Observer – Observatoire des Réformes de Santé, Social Theory & Health, International Journal of Care and Caring, Canadian Journal of Disability Studies, and Critical Social Policy, among others. She has participated in media interviews and legal proceedings related to her research expertise.
In addition to her monograph, Dr. Kelly is co-editor (with Michael Orsini) of Mobilizing Metaphor: Art, Culture and Disability Activism in Canada (2016, UBC Press), a collection that considers the role of art and radical organizing in transforming contemporary Canadian disability movements. She is co-editor (with Katie Aubrecht and Carla Rice) of Aging—Disability Nexus (2020, UBC Press), a collection that explores the theoretical, policy and empirical overlaps across aging and disability studies. Dr. Kelly is co-editor of UBC Press’s Disability Culture and Politics book series .
Drawing on feminist theory, disability studies and health equity, Dr. Kelly’s current work considers the intersections of aging and disability, evolving models of home care delivery, and the role of art in embodied social movements. Dr. Kelly leads a national study exploring directly-funded home care, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.