Abstract
As a first-time investigation of 'psychosocial inclusivity' in design, this paper introduces and establishes the concept of psychosocially inclusive design, and explores it within the context of supermarket shopping for older individuals, as one instrumental activity of daily living. Inclusive design theory and practice have been predominantly concerned with issues of physical access, limiting its scope and relevance to the wider more complex psychosocial issues. Employing research triangulation and rigorous empirical investigations, this paper advances the fundamental understanding, extends the general research agenda, and pushes the current boundaries of inclusive design towards non-physical inclusion by identifying any possible psychosocial constructs. Four constructs including 'cognitive', 'emotional', 'social', and 'value' were identified in the context of supermarket shopping through ethnographic interviews; creative workshop; and observations conducted with a total of 58 older individuals. The results may play a crucial role in establishing the theoretical foundations to the concept of psychosocial inclusivity in design.
Highlights
It is often argued that further exploration, evaluation and development is needed in order to achieve genuine and holistic inclusivity within our increasingly diverse and complex societies (Frye, 2013; Hedvall, 2013; Nickpour et al, 2012; Gaver and Martin, 2000; Demirkan, 2007; Imrie and Hall, 2003; Demirbilek and Demirkan, 1998)
These research questions were answered through three empirical research methods: ethnographic interviews, creative workshop, and observations
Despite the established importance of inclusive design in various contexts, current understanding of inclusive design is rather limited in its application (Persson et al, 2015)
Summary
An ageing population with substantial disposable income and more active roles in society, coupled with an increasingly vocal community of people with disabilities, are leading to the increasing visibility of social isolation, inequality, and need for inclusivity beyond physical access (Hedvall, 2013; Nickpour et al, 2012; Gaver and Martin, 2000; Demirkan, 2007; Imrie and Hall, 2003; Demirbilek and Demirkan, 1998).Inclusive design is one approach for addressing these issues and for moving towards greater diversity and equality (Da Silva et al, 2013; McCarron et al, 2013; Suzman and Beard, 2011; Stephanidis and Emiliani, 1999). The existing theory and practice of inclusive design still predominantly focus on accessibility and physical aspects of experience, there appears to be an opportunity for integrating further research which addresses the psychological and social aspects of inclusion In this paper, these non-physical aspects of inclusivity involving psychological and social aspects are referred to as ‘psychosocial inclusivity’. Lim (2018) suggests a definition of psychosocial inclusivity as “the provision of equal or equitable opportunities in design for a better quality of life for as many people as possible, considering both psychological and social factors” based on theoretically informed research. This paper adopts this as a working definition
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