La Wallace
Autonomy and socialising around meals
Type of project: Exploratory research
Disabilities concerned: Mental disability, motor disability, multiple disability
Topics: Housing, interpersonal relations, nutrition
Status: Completed
The Wallace’s final technical objective is to develop a technical device that will enable adults with severe addictions to prepare a meal and receive guests at the table. The final scientific and methodological objective is to put in place an original inclusive design methodology, in which the disabled users concerned are the driving force behind design for all.
The Wallace’s final technical objective is to develop a technical device that will enable adults with severe addictions to prepare a meal and receive guests at the table. The final scientific and methodological objective is to put in place an original inclusive design methodology, in which the disabled users concerned are the driving force behind design for all. The final scientific and methodological objective is to set up an original inclusive design methodology, in which users with severe disabilities are the driving force behind a design for all.
In the first stage of the research described here, the aim is to better define the functional, but also the psycho-sociological, affective and symbolic needs that will build the specifications of this device and to set up a methodological strategy aiming at an original approach of inclusive design. Over the 5 months of the project, we succeeded in setting up an approach in which a group of 5 representative people with severe disabilities were put at the centre of the design process.
From expressing needs to co-designing a solution, we were able to put in place a “truly inclusive” design approach. This methodological work was documented and enhanced by the production of 4 video clips. In addition, the interviews and observations carried out with this group enabled us to define the overall specifications of what the “la wallace” solution must be if it is to become an adapted, acceptable and inclusive solution. Finally, 4 possible solutions were identified, proposing socio-technical systems that include a continuation of the inclusive design process. These ideas still need to be evaluated and validated by the group in December 2022.
