Between normality and disability: Sensitive cognitive boundaries

Abstract

Within the framework of a cognitive sociology of everyday life (Schütz, 1962; Berger and Luckmann, 1966; Zérubavel, 1997), this article proposes to explore the effects of normality and of norms, accepted as reality/truth, on people who are experiencing rare situations. First, we will analyze the practical consequences of these norms on the use of the body and the physical environment. Then, based on the sociology of knowledge of everyday life, we will ex-plain the partial lack of semanticization (Gardien, 2008) of the reality lived by people in rare situations. These analyses will highlight the major role of generally accepted criteria of rele-vance, and of the poorly recognized perceptual and cognitive boundaries that result from them. The conclusion will lead to courses of action aimed at broadening the field of intersub-jectivity to include greater cognitive diversity.