Sex Education and the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Twenty Years after the CRPD: A Scoping Review protocol of Global Evidence (2006–2026)

This project consists of a scoping review examining the international literature on sex education for persons with disabilities published between 2006 and 2026, corresponding to the twenty years following the adoption of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The purpose of the study is to provide a comprehensive overview of how sex education for persons with disabilities has been conceptualized, implemented, and evaluated within a rights-based framework over the post-CRPD period. Sex education is a key component of the rights to education, health, autonomy, and participation articulated in the CRPD. Nevertheless, persons with disabilities continue to face significant barriers to accessing inclusive, accessible, and rights-affirming sexuality education across educational, health, and community settings. Research on this topic has expanded over the past two decades, yet it remains fragmented across disciplines, regions, disability groups, and methodological approaches. This scoping review seeks to systematically map this body of literature in order to clarify its scope, identify dominant themes, and highlight areas of omission or underrepresentation. The review will include peer-reviewed and selected grey literature addressing sex education, sexuality education, and related educational practices for children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities. Using a structured search strategy across multiple academic databases and institutional sources, the study will chart key characteristics of the literature, including study design, populations, disability types, educational contexts, and conceptual or theoretical frameworks. Particular attention will be given to the extent to which the literature reflects CRPD principles, such as autonomy, dignity, participation, non-discrimination, and accessibility.