Understanding of the Role of Context in the Experience of Disability and Assistive Technology: New Framework for AT (Preprint)

Abstract

UNSTRUCTURED The immediate context in which a person lives shapes their experience of impairment and disability. Assistive technology (AT) tools are the interface between impairment and context. This article presents a new framework for the design of assistive technology. It provides a theoretical exploration of the relationship between context, assistive technology and impairment. For this, first, we examine the theoretical challenges raised by the interface AT and impairments, considering dominant conceptual models of disability. Then, we analysed the role of context in the design, distribution and use of AT. Our framework addresses the current disconnect between the population the technology aims to serve and the innovation ecosystem. Disability is very diverse, and persons with diverse impairments benefit from different technology. Because of this diversity, we focus on visual impairment. We conclude this article by laying out a new framework for the design of AT that addresses the role of the context in which a person lives and aims to enable personal freedom in it. We do it by using the lenses of the capabilities approach. Our framework goes beyond the classical approach of only looking at AT as a tool for task performance. We argue that AT becomes a conversion tool that enables disabled persons to reach full social participation, addressing the variety of social and environmental contexts in which persons with disabilities live. Finally, we provide recommendations for future research.