Plans For This Evening ?
An inclusive technology for planning and accessing activities outside the home during free time
Phase 1
Type of project: Exploratory research
Disability concerned: All disabilities are concerned, our project is based on a universal approach and a desire to promote diversity.
Topics: Leisure, Free time
Status: Completed
Identify the needs of potential users, both people with disabilities and service managers; identify the resources available for planning and carrying out activities; develop and test a new pilot tool.
People with disabilities (PWD) can encounter many difficulties when planning and carrying out activities during their free time. This research aims to highlight the needs of key players in the leisure sector. It has three objectives: to identify the needs of potential users, both people with disabilities and service managers; to identify the resources available for planning and carrying out activities; and to develop and test a new pilot tool.
A participatory methodological design, based on interviews, focus groups and observations, has enabled us to refine the issue of access to leisure activities and to highlight the resources and obstacles currently encountered by various stakeholders.
The people questioned identified the feeling of familiarity as a central element enabling them to engage in leisure activities independently and comfortably. Numerous tools exist to describe environments. The indicators used refer to physical accessibility. Sensory characteristics, for example, are poorly documented.
The development and testing of a pilot ‘paper version’ tool has highlighted the difficulties associated with describing environments based on subjective, fluctuating and intangible criteria. The visual representation of certain items, such as a photo of a crowd, can be unclear. Finally, the results highlight the possibilities offered by technologies to make the participation of people with disabilities more effective. The development of a technology that matches the description of a profile with that of an environment (place and activity) could be a solution that facilitates the identification of adapted and accessible places and activities.
Contact
HES-SO, Haute Ecole de Travail Social et de la Santé
Aline Veyre
aline.veyre@hetsl.ch