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The awareness that museums must be inclusive and participatory led to practices adapted to visitors' requirements and co-creative experiences, encouraging interaction with exhibitions, and thus fostering memorable experiences. Yet, constraints remain for people with disabilities, reducing their satisfaction and desire to return. Despite the high number of people with visual impairments worldwide, there is a lack of research on factors that may impact their co-creation in museums. This paper aims to identify factors influencing the co-creation of people with visual impairments experiences in museums, either facilitating or constraining it. Based on focus groups discussion, the results of the study conducted suggest that the co-creation of people with visual impairments in museums is influenced both by aspects related to visitors, as well as by disabling features of the museums' physical, communicational, and attitudinal environments. Conclusions and implications drawn are critical to improve the experience of people with visual impairments in museums. This article highlights that despite the high number of people with visual impairments worldwide, many still face constraints when visiting museums. The article reveals that several museums offer opportunities for interacting with the whole museum environment and co-creating value, to trigger memorable experiences. This paper fills a research gap by analysing how a set of factors influence people with visual impairments to get involved in co-creation in museums, either facilitating or constraining it. The research found that the factors that influence co-creation of experiences of people with visual impairments in museums can be related to the visitors or to the museums, including physical, communicational and attitudinal aspects. The article provides guidelines to improve the co-creation in museums of people with visual impairments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessibility and security issues pertaining to people with disabilities in Zimbabwe’s urban areas have so far received limited priority in scholarship and social policy. This is a major deviation from the prerequisites for disability inclusion, rights-based governance and development, and transformative social policy. Using qualitative research methodology, the paper addresses this compelling lacuna by exploring selected germane issues affecting people with disabilities, and advances policy options that Zimbabwe and other countries can implement to transform the well-being of this often excluded and trivialized group. The article acknowledges current effort for improving accessibility and security in and of urban areas but more importantly shows that people with disabilities are experiencing multiple problems due to glaring deficiencies in urban policy, amenities, and services. Transformative disability policy buttressed by a multi-stakeholder approach is indispensable in improving the situation of people with disabilities in relation to accessibility and security in urban areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditional qualitative inquiry research methods exhort us to look for the 'good' story tellers who use metaphors to describe their experiences, emotions, and events. This privileges abled-bodied individuals, meaning that without full individual accessibility for people with disability is not achieved. The objective of this paper is to present a case study on inclusion of research participants who live with deafblindness. This case study posits where qualitative story telling spaces currently are; whose voices occupy these narratives; what is said and how it is said: and the performative aspects of the qualitative inquiry currently. Research including people with disability is reflected in the evidence base, however the question that if qualitative methods don't seek to explore and understand these differences, epistemic injustices will be perpetrated. The case study reflects on a research project whose methodology sought to solicit hospital experiences for those living with deafblindness. The Australian study of 18 deafblind participants with wide ranging communication needs, shared in-depth narrative inquiry stories told in: 'snapshots' of moments of disempowerment; through sign and vibrotactile communication; usage of the strong verb with metaphor rarely present except to exclusively describe instances of dehumanisation. Narrative inquiry method when used with people who are deafblind is predominately chaotic with some tense instability for non-signing participants. Emphasis is via repetition, altered pitch and expletives. Touch centricity is fundamental. Dissonance is evident between words used and stories told. The thematic analysis identified a need to reflect epistemically across the creation of any qualitative project from beginning to end, focussing on what is being said and how it is being said or signed or felt. The conclusion of the paper provides a roadmap for future projects to ensure improvements in the enhancing of awareness of different ways of being, doing and telling in qualitative research methods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Currently, equity of access to computer science education represents a challenge: computer science education is indispensable for active participation in a computational world, but current initiatives tend to increase existing gaps due to cultural, socioeconomic and contextual factors. This paper proposes a model for equitable computing education that contributes to the reduction of these gaps through three main strategies: (I) Investigating how students learn in particular contexts; (II) Building teacher capacity to teach computing through professional development programs, while investigating how teachers learn, and how they succeed (or fail) in bringing it to the classroom; and (III) Designing accessible devices for teaching computing. This accessibility includes devices that are low-cost, but that are also versatile, in terms of their appearance, the ways they interact, and the concepts they teach. This article describes the model for equitable computer education, and shows a case study for each of the strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In modern society, people engage in social interactions and activities outside their own home. When in public settings people may need to eliminate bodily waste, so public toilets are required. Accessibility, availability and adaptability are essential principles for safe, private, and purposeful visits to public toilets. A diverse range of individuals use public toilets: various age profiles, all gender groups, vulnerable individuals and people with additional needs. Public toilets essentially need to be a place of privacy, safety and cleanliness to facilitate elimination of urine, evacuation of faeces, management of menstruation, and changing/disposing of continence wear products in a secure environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Higher education has seen a significant shift in the last two decades, with contemporary students representing more diverse cohorts who are increasingly balancing study alongside competing life-roles and responsibilities. Given the rise in student attrition and concerns regarding engagement, we saw a visible need to consider how our students could be better supported in managing their study requirements which might improve retention and engagement. We asked students what best helps them to manage their learning and time, and this study reports on responses from 430 students over 8 course offerings between 2019 and 2021. Responses were coded using inductive category development and grouped into internal and external locus of control. The findings reveal 52.6% students demonstrated an interplay of internal and external locus of control factors, while 29.5% identified fully internal and 17.9% indicated fully external LOC. The study highlights that flexible, multi-pronged strategies and institutional supports are fundamental in supporting diverse modern tertiary student populations. The paper concludes with considerations for educators and higher education institutions, drawing on the principles of Universal Design for Learning and pedagogical care that may address many aspects raised by students that are outside their locus of control, which may consequently benefit student retention and engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: According to social-ecological models, the built and natural environment has the potential to facilitate or hinder physical activity (PA). While this potential is well researched in urban areas, a current systematic review of how the built and natural environment is related to PA in rural areas is lacking. Methods: We searched five databases and included studies for adults (18–65 years) living in rural areas. We included quantitative studies investigating the association between any self-reported or objectively measured characteristic of the built or natural environment and any type of self-reported or objectively measured PA, and qualitative studies that reported on features of the built or natural environment perceived as barriers to or facilitators of PA by the participants. Screening for eligibility and quality assessment (using the Standard Quality Assessment Criteria for Evaluating Primary Research Papers from a Variety of Fields) were done in duplicate. We used a narrative approach to synthesize the results. Results: Of 2432 non-duplicate records, 51 quantitative and 19 qualitative studies were included. Convincing positive relationships were found between the availability and accessibility of places for exercise and recreation and leisure-time PA as well as between the overall environment and leisure-time PA. Possible positive associations were found between the overall environment and total and transport-related PA, between greenness/natural environment and total PA, between cycling infrastructure and aesthetics and MVPA, and between pedestrian infrastructure and total walking. A possible negative relationship was found between safety and security and total walking. Qualitative studies complemented several environmental facilitators (facilities for exercise and recreation, sidewalks or streets with low traffic, attractive natural environment) and barriers (lack of facilities and destinations, lack of sidewalks, speeding traffic and high traffic volumes, lack of street lighting). Conclusions: Research investigating the relationship between the built and natural environment and PA behaviors of adults living in rural areas is still limited and there is a need for more high-quality and longitudinal studies. However, our most positive findings indicate that investing in places for exercise and recreation, a safe infrastructure for active transport, and nature-based activities are possible strategies that should be considered to address low levels of PA in rural adults. Trial registration: PROSPERO: CRD42021283508. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

First, as a fan of live music and a power wheelchair user living with congenital muscular dystrophy, I use critical storytelling to describe my personal experiences of negotiating for accessibility during participation in arts and cultural activities. Second, I reflect broadly on the ableist ideologies that contribute to the inaccessibility of arts and cultural activities, focusing on the narrow scope of target participants, the ableist rationale for accessibility service provision, the inaccessibility of promotional materials and ticketing, segregated seating arrangements, venue inaccessibility, and single-modal performance. Third, I highlight the detrimental impact of the inaccessibility of arts and cultural activities at the organizational, social, intergroup, interpersonal, and individual levels. Finally, I propose future research directions and suggestions for inclusive practice in arts and cultural activities. This paper aims to promote self-empowerment, unravel the manifestations of ableism in arts and cultural activities, and stimulate readers' critical reflection on in/accessibility of arts and cultural activities. As a power wheelchair user living with congenital muscular dystrophy in Hong Kong, I reflect on how my first-hand experiences of going to more than 60 live concerts and some other arts and cultural activities across five places reinforce discrimination and stereotypes against wheelchair users. I provide examples of my real-life scenarios to illustrate the discrimination against wheelchair users in cultural and arts activities. Examples include experiences in the purchase of concert tickets, inquiries about accessible seating options, communication with venue staff, and interactions with my companions during concerts. I reflect on the impact of the discrimination and barriers of arts and cultural activities. I provide examples of inclusive practices that can promote the accessibility of arts and cultural activities. The writing process is a self-empowering. It helps organize and express my emotions and thoughts regarding the barriers encountered in arts and cultural activities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Public libraries are community spaces dedicated to promoting equal opportunities and providing access to culture and knowledge. To fulfill this mission effectively and efficiently, this volume presents nine papers that offer guidelines for public library management. These papers not only review international standards and indicators (such as IFLA/Unesco and ISO), but also analyze the structure of the national library services system. Additionally, they provide guidelines in various areas, including user relationships, personnel organization, information resource arrangement, infrastructure planning, strategic plan design, and cooperation networks with governmental and non-governmental organizations. These nine compiled works present a concept that allows for the design of accessible and inclusive libraries, without any distinction among the population, in the face of today's challenges characterized by multiculturalism and digitization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social work education is mandated to provide inclusivity and accessibility to all students. Critical disability theory (CDT) challenges the notion that disabilities should be eradicated; rather, it declares that different abilities should be acknowledged and embraced as contributions. Universal design (UD), originating as a framework for accessible architectural building designs, has become a pedagogical approach in education. UD supports CDT and takes it farther by suggesting how to develop an inclusive environment. Through the lens of CDT and UD, this conceptual paper provides the rationale for educators to increase classroom inclusivity and accessibility by adding closed captions to all learning materials, presentations and videos, Closed captions, the text of verbal language, is beneficial for many different types of students, including those with processing disorder or hearing loss, those who did not learn English as their primary language, and those who have difficulty with focus. Further, this paper seeks to provide a step-by-step instruction manual to assist instructors with immediately including captions in their learning materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increased accessibility of technology is often employed as rationale for data extraction and surveillance. This paper examines critical perspectives on surveillance and educational technologies from Library and Information Science (LIS) literature, as well as those from disability studies that concern technology development more broadly. This research aims to understand how a disability justice framework can interrogate both the overall expansion of surveillance technologies and justifications for increased surveillance that argue that data extraction and analytics lead to increased accessibility for disabled users. As an activist approach toward disability advocacy that underscores the connections between white supremacy, sexism and colonialism as central to ableism, disability justice recognizes surveillance technologies as embedded in systems of power that disproportionately harm people of color, immigrants, transgender people, and gender nonconforming people. Using a disability justice framework, this paper argues against the expansion of surveillance technologies – especially in the name of increasing accessibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Attention should be devoted to the accessibility of campus facilities to older adults and as a means to increase age-diversity. In this paper, we sought to uncover older adults' perceptions of campus accessibility via an online survey. Participants were recruited through local newsletters, and word of mouth, and included 81 community members (M Age = 71.58 years; 79% female; 89% White). Descriptive analyses were conducted for closed-ended responses and a constant comparative method was used to code open-ended responses. Based on the closed-ended responses, participants felt that the campus was somewhat accessible, moderately easy to walk around, and felt somewhat welcome on campus. The following general themes emerged in the open-ended responses: 1) inaccessibility on campus was related to parking and topography constraints (e.g., due to stairs, distance, hills); 2) accessibility on campus was due to sidewalks and access to transportation; 3) feeling welcome on campus was related to people being helpful, and 4) not feeling welcome was related to not 'being in the know' and not feeling like they belonged. These findings have implications for campus initiatives that aim to attract older adults, especially for campuses that have topography constraints. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present century faces developmental fallout as vulnerability and risk mount on the global systems due to climate change, urbanisation, and population ageing. Moreover, population ageing is gaining a stronger hold in urban areas, and so are climate change and related shocks and stresses. Consequently, repercussions for the weakest sections of society – including the elderly – remain under academic consideration. In this context, the paper aims to understand the perilous predicament of older people due to the occurrence and interaction between climate change, urbanisation, and population ageing. This review investigates the underpinnings of the nature of the interaction among the three phenomena; and discerns how as a result of the interaction, various climate change related shocks and stresses affect older people in urban settings. It emerges that these three phenomena exhibit: concurrence; a positive trend of growth; and a cyclic pattern of interaction with four linkages, implying (i) rapid urbanisation is fuelling climate change, (ii) climate change is impacting urban areas, (iii) older people are increasing in urban areas, and (iv) urbanisation provides opportunities and barriers for older people. This interplay further discloses that older people stand vulnerable and at heightened risk from climate change related stressors in urban areas. These understandings highlight the need to ensure that urban environments remain age-friendly even in the face of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assistive technologies have allowed people with disabilities to perform daily tasks with greater independence and autonomy, especially for visually impaired people. Using smart home solutions allows these users to control their homes with less cognitive and physical demand. However, making such applications accessible to meet the needs of visually impaired users, especially in developing countries, remains a challenge. This paper investigates the perceptions of these users about home automation technologies through semi-structured interviews. A total of 20 visually impaired people participated in the interviews. A thematic analysis revealed results concerning the following themes: (1) how people go about their lives at home and around, how people interact with current appliances, objects and environments, (3) how people perceive their attitude to technologies, (4) the Brazilian context of smart homes, (5) what people think smart homes should do and (6) envisaging ways of interacting with smart home systems. The results obtained provide significant insight into the needs of visually-impaired people in Brazil, with analysis of issues that are common with previous studies in more developed countries and specific issues that have important particularities and implications in Brazil and other developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: The purpose of this scoping review is to synthesize and map available evidence on the design of "housing with care" (HWC) schemes to inform design decisions built on objective data from previous research, which is key to ensuring such schemes are fit for purpose for older people. Background: HWC is becoming increasingly recognized as a model for developing housing schemes for older people and balances independent living with elevated levels of care. However, as this scheme is still relatively novel, there are currently no established theoretical frameworks to inform design. Methods: Scoping review, thematic analysis, and mapping methods were used to comprehensively search for and synthesize evidence that links design with assessments of quality-of-life data for HWC schemes. Study findings for each included paper were subject to data extraction for inductive analysis, and the quality of each study was assessed using a modified critical appaisal skills programme (CASP) checklist. Results: Our searches yielded 821 unique references, of which 18 unique articles met the inclusion criteria. The outcomes of interest were the design considerations or features in HWC schemes and their impact on the residents. The main themes identified were related to design element, accessibility, maneuverability, views, design procedure, and quality of life (QOL). Further subthemes identified across papers were identified to create a comprehensive map of the key features to consider in designing HWC schemes. Conclusion: This review provides an initial framework for designers and architects to (1) understand the effect of each design element of HWC and (2) inform design to ultimately improve the QOL of aged people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The deterioration of the environment in the 21st century has made environmental issues one of the most severe tests for modern society. With this comes a change in energy structure from high-carbon to low-carbon direction, and electric vehicles are gradually developing into the darling of a city with low-carbon transportation and safe travel. This paper carries out a systematic analysis of landscape design and environmental protection in the development of new energy electric vehicle charging facilities in urban habitat. By categorizing the content and provisions of published domestic and international standards, new requirements for standardization are obtained, including barrier-free design, electromagnetic radiation, child safety protection, and urban landscape integration. Among them, ecological landscape public charging facilities can enhance the overall quality of urban environment. This paper analyzes the necessity of landscape design in charging facilities, explores the ecological concepts extended by macroscopic landscape design principles and the problems of public charging facilities, and proposes a design and evaluation method of ecologically landscaped public charging facilities based on hierarchical analysis and neural networks. The hierarchical analysis method is introduced to establish a landscape design assessment index system, and then a neural network is introduced to describe the characteristics of electric vehicle charging, and the landscape design assessment learning samples are trained to establish a landscape design assessment model. Finally, a comparison experiment is conducted with other landscape design assessment methods using specific examples, and the results show that the proposed method has more obvious advantages in ecological landscape public charging facility design assessment with high accuracy, faster landscape design assessment, charging efficiency, and environmental protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Map portals can facilitate the work of public administration units and improve access to information, although they have to present high material and technical quality. Not without significance are also measures supporting these websites. This paper aims to assess the quality of selected geoinformation websites. The study was carried out in the form of a quality audit with the use of selected web applications provided in a freeware, thin-client model. A comparative analysis was performed on three versions of the geoservice functioning for the Tomice municipality (accessed on 5th July 2023): 1) eMPZP website (https://www.tomice.pl/mpzp/), 2) municipal geoportal (http://www.mpzp.tomice.pl), and 3) municipal map portal (https://sip.gison. pl/tomice). The measurements were taken only once and in an ad hoc manner. The tests were performed in selected quality dimensions: responsiveness, performance, content and hyperlink quality, accessibility for people with disabilities, syntactic code correctness, search engine optimisation (SEO), and usage indicators, with special emphasis on overall quality. The conclusion was that each of the geoportals evaluated presents good quality. However, it would be wrong to compare them in absolute terms, as the quality of these services should be assessed through the lens of the different times in which they operate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessible transport would increase opportunities and services for People with Disabilities (PwDs) including but not limited to work, healthcare, and social inclusion, which will translate into positive economic and community outcomes. Accessible transport will reduce restrictions on PWDs' freedom of movement, which violates their rights and undermines their dignity and inclusion. The lack of accessible transport represents one of the biggest challenges for PwDs. This paper provides an overview of accessible road vehicles and captures key information needed to design an accessible AV. A comprehensive analysis of 57 studies reveals relevant design requirements for a diverse group including PwDs. Recommendations for the design of accessible AVs are provided. The paper emphasizes the importance of user acceptance, accessibility, and trust. The design process should consider various PwD types and trip stages, employ multimodal outputs, conduct trials, explore subsidizing fares for PwDs, and create specialized vehicles for different purposes or contexts. • Systematic literature review about accessible road vehicles • Captures critical information required to design accessible vehicles including but not limited to autonomous • Recommendations for the design of accessible AVs are provided • Focus on user acceptance, accessibility, and trust • Considers various user types and trip stages, including multimodal • Covers specialized vehicles for different purposes or contexts [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A key public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic is the mandate to stay home and practice physical distancing. In Canada, with essential activities such as grocery shopping, outdoor exercise and transportation, people need to be able to safely navigate dense, urban spaces while staying at least two metres or six feet apart. This pandemic has exacerbated the health inequities across neighbourhoods in cities like Toronto, Canada which are often segregated along racial and income lines. These inequities impact who has access to urban infrastructure that promotes health and quality of life. Safety in a time of COVID-19 goes beyond just exposure to the virus, it is complicated by notions of who belongs where, and who has access to what resources. The built environment has a role in maintaining and promoting physical and mental health during this pandemic and beyond it. This paper puts forwards three considerations for built environment interventions to promote health equitably: (i) addressing structural determinants of health and embedding anti-racist intersectional principles, (ii) revisiting tactical urbanism as a health promotion tool and (iii) rethinking community engagement processes through equity-based placemaking. This paper outlines four built environment interventions in Toronto, Canada that seek to address the challenges in navigating urban space safely in the short term, including street design that prioritizes pedestrians, protected cycling infrastructure, access to inclusive green space and safe, affordable housing. Longer-term strategies to create health-promoting urban environments that are equitable are discussed and may be valuable to other cities with similar urban equity concerns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Occupational therapists recommending home modifications in Australia are often required by funding bodies to consider 'value' and 'value for money' (VFM); however, clear guidance on how to define and apply these concepts is not always provided. This paper reports on a qualitative study examining how the concepts of value and VFM are currently understood and operationalised by occupational therapists in Australian home modification practice, with the aim of positively contributing to both policy and practice in this area. Methods: The study utilised constructivist grounded theory to collect and analyse qualitative data from 20 occupational therapists who were currently working across Australia and had professional experience in home modifications. Findings: The grounded theory that was derived from the analysis highlights the unique position that occupational therapists occupy in home modification work as they strive to align the values of different stakeholders to create solutions that all consider to be valuable. In the absence of consistent frameworks or methods for determining value and VFM, evidence also emerged of occupational therapists using a range of individual approaches such as using formal and informal care as metrics, cheapest option approaches, and comparative costing. Conclusion: In addition to a clear need for consistent and transparent approaches to understanding and operationalising VFM in home modifications, there is also a need for further investigation into the value systems that underpin this work. A conceptualisation of occupational therapists as street‐level policy agents has proven useful here as it highlights the position occupational therapists occupy, enacting, making, and, at times, challenging policy in day‐to‐day practice as they work to align the values of the various stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The focus of this paper is to examine the role that models play in informing the approach that post-secondary education institutions take to developing inclusive and equitable practices that successfully and appropriately address the access needs of disabled students in relation to information and communications technology. It reviews the current approach of the post-secondary education community to using models to inform their accessibility practice with respect to ICT and explores the answers to three related questions: 1. What alternatives to the Universal Design model exist? 2. How do we differentiate between different accessibility models? 3. Do we need more than one model to inform accessibility practice? One key outcome of this exploration is a proposed evaluation framework that can help post-secondary institutions make informed decisions about the most appropriate model for them to adopt. The paper concludes that such a framework has potential to transform practitioners' approaches to accessibility by suggesting that excellence may not require a 'blanket approach' in which just one model 'rules' or dominates their thinking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessible Summary: What is known on the subject: Comfort as a conceptual and lived experience is essential in psychiatric hospital contexts and for overall mental health wellbeing.Comfort is a valuable aspect when designing hospitals and built environments for psychiatric care. What the paper adds to existing knowledge: This article presents the results from a Design Anthropology study at four Psychiatric Units co‐located in a newly built regional hospital based on 126 ethnographic interviews with staff, within which 63 participants mentioned the importance of comfort in generating environments conducive to wellbeing.An in‐depth qualitative understanding of comforting practices, as emergent forms of everyday care. These may receive less attention within more established interventions from organisational models of care (e.g., Safewards) and might appear to be implicit gestures of courtesy. However, they contribute to meaningful encounters and contribute to individual and organisational wellbeing in psychiatric care. What are the implications for practice: This paper builds on comfort theories and demonstrates implications for practice through ethnographic examples. Comfort, often unnoticed until it is absent, needs to be maintained through continuous "small" but intentional acts of care. These constitute a finely tuned repertoire of everyday comforting practices of care at psychiatric contexts.Corridors and doors are presented as spaces where people have brief interactions that can contribute to everyday comforting experiences.Comfort is discussed in dialogue with existing literatures from psychiatric nursing, healthcare building design and design anthropology. Implicit and improvised practices of care that foster comforting environments have vital potential to support institutionally endorsed models of care (e.g., Safewards).The article proposes that design has a dual role for comforting environments in psychiatric care; (a) through the practice of architectural design and (b) through the practices of staff when creating everyday comforting interactions for wellbeing. Introduction: Creating a comforting environment is essential for delivering psychiatric care. While healthcare organisations explicitly implement care models and adapt the physical environment, attention to staff's implicit everyday practice is limited. Aim: Developing a design anthropology approach tailored specifically to the research site, we examine the social and physical environment to unpack how staff integrate both—implicit comforting interventions, and the explicit measures taken by the organisation—into their everyday practices of psychiatric care. Method: Design and sensory ethnography, using extended observations and "walking tours" were undertaken with 126 staff members. A thematic analysis was conducted on all visual and audio material. Results: Staff's everyday implicit care practices and situated design decisions provide a comforting environment for patients, visitors and staff. Discussion: Implicit practices combine with an explicit organisational model of care to achieve a comforting environment. The value of design anthropology to uncover these dynamics is emphasized. Comforting practice involving implicit gestures of courtesy, which are infrequently addressed within organisational models of care (e.g., Safewards), are foregrounded. Implications for practice: Explicit models of care have clear value in generating comfort; however, psychiatric hospital care also benefits from less visible modes of delivering comfort through everyday practices. By acknowledging both explicit and implicit modes of comfort, we can better understand how care models and psychiatric cultures of care are nurtured. Continuous "small" but intentional acts of care (e.g., brief interactions in corridors and at doors) constitute a finely tuned repertoire of everyday comforting practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An increasing focus in aged care policy is supporting older people to age at home. However, there is little recognition of the health and independence of older private renters living in a space they do not own or control. This paper draws on in-depth interviews and assessments undertaken in the homes of 27 older tenants in the Brisbane environs aiming to understand how renting privately influenced their ability to meet their basic needs. An analysis of the findings highlights the disadvantage experienced by many older private renters. Most older private renters were unable to meet their basic needs given unaffordable rent whilst reliant on the aged pension. Further, with limited access to community aged care including home modifications, the health and independence of older private renters was found to be at risk. IMPLICATIONS Community aged care is difficult for older private renters to utilise in Australia, with unaffordable services and tenancy law limiting access to community aged care services including home modifications. It is vital social workers advocate for the community aged care needs of older private renters in practice and policy settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technology‐dependent children are a sub‐population of seriously ill children with life‐limiting conditions who are being cared for at home by their families. Although home‐based care has been the model of care for these children since the late 1980s, there is a paucity of literature about parents' experiences of having home adaptations made to enable their home to be a place of care for their child. Using the findings from auto‐driven photo‐elicitation interviews conducted between August 2017 and June 2018 with 12 parents (10 mothers and 2 fathers) who have a technology‐dependent child (aged 5–25 years) living in England, Scotland and Wales and David Seamon's five concepts of at‐homeness (appropriation, at‐easeness, regeneration, rootedness and warmth) as a conceptual framework, this paper addresses how parents' experienced home adaptations. Thematic analysis generated a meta‐theme of 'Home needs to be a home for all family members' and the three key themes: (1) 'You just get told' and 'you're not involved'; (2) It's just the 'cheapest', 'quickest', 'short‐term' approach; (3) Having 'control' and 'thinking things through.' The need to involve parents in decision‐making about adaptations that are made to their home (family‐informed design) is clear, not only from a cost‐saving perspective for the state, but for creating an aesthetic and functional home that optimises health, well‐being and feelings of at‐homeness for the entire family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a new topological acoustic interlayer is proposed, which is formed by combining multi-order resonators in the form of the triangular lattice in the normal direction of the acoustic interlayer. Through the strong resonance of the resonator, the distribution of modes in the acoustic interlayer is directly induced to form a combination of modes with different topological states to support the subwavelength multi-channel lossless directional acoustic transmission in barrier-free space. Since there are no scatterers, not only can the required frequency band be directly achieved through the resonance frequency of the resonator alone, but also the background medium space in which the acoustic wave transmitting is a uniform medium, so the transmission is secret and the structure is ventilated. More importantly, there is more space in the normal direction of the barrier-free interlayer for design sub-wavelength multi-channel transmission. Furthermore, the random obstacles in interlayer do not affect the transmission under the pseudo spin modes. Finally, experimental verification is carried out. This research paves the way for the engineering application of multi-band acoustic antennas, covert communication, ventilated devices and other multi-functional devices, and will bring new enlightenment to the fields of elastic wave, light wave and electromagnetic wave. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recognition of disability as a social construct has aided in providing better access to the built environment for disabled people, through the implementation of accessible spaces. However, access to them is not straightforward for disabled people who do not match stereotypical representations of disability. Drawing on empirical data collected from semi structured interviews and photo elicitation exercises, conducted with people with dwarfism living in the UK, this paper shows how they are often challenged or denied access to accessible spaces, creating a hierarchy of impairments. Building on the notion of 'statuarized spaces' the paper demonstrates how access to accessible spaces is influenced by their representation, which differs from representations of dwarfism, leading to incongruous encounters. These incongruous encounters affect the spatial practices of people with dwarfism. A more varied representation of disability is required in order to provide people with dwarfism straightforward access to accessible spaces. The ideas explored in this paper are based upon research carried out with people with dwarfism living in the UK. Shows how people with dwarfism are told off or challenged by other people when they want to access to accessible spaces. The paper shows some of the ways people with dwarfism gain access to accessible spaces. The paper argues for a broader representation of disability in order for people with dwarfism to be recognised as disabled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of inclusive education is to address students' special educational needs so that they are able to fully participate in the education community. The universities have been increasingly attempting to cater for the diversity of students by undertaking innovative projects through the adaptation of new technologies, which is key to their development. However, the evolution of inclusive education is uneven and largely depends on each university, as the resources, methods, and practices vary across institutions. The purpose of this paper is to propose an indicator to evaluate the state of inclusive education at each university. This indicator could ascertain the extent of curriculum adaptation and the degree of accessibility at universities, as well as the resources and projects they are developing to achieve inclusion. It will allow for a ranking of institutions according to the progress made in the field of inclusive education and, more specifically, for the comparison across universities regarding the quality of the specific measures taken to help students with special educational needs. This inclusive education indicator is a dynamic tool that may be updated immediately and provides the university community with the means to guide students with specific needs and their families in pre-university and university stages, among others. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This paper aims to explore residents' perceptions of a refurbishment programme to sheltered housing schemes and its impact on their well-being. Design/methodology/approach: The methodology draws upon a realist evaluation framework. Four participatory appraisals (PAs) and 19 interviews with residents were conducted in the sheltered housing schemes. Ages of participants ranged from 50 to 99 years. Findings: Two categories of residents were identified: healthy active older adults and older frail adults (or over 85+). Residents said their social and emotional well-being improved from the provision of indoor and outdoor communal areas. Older frail residents only accessed the new communal spaces when staff took them in their wheelchairs. The physical changes increased opportunities for social connections for residents. Conservatories and sensory gardens were most popular. Residents felt that structured activities in the new spaces and digital training would improve their social activities. Research limitations/implications: The participatory methods spanned over an hour, and some residents felt too tired to complete the full session. Practical implications: A practical limitation was that some sensory rooms were not fully completed at the time of the evaluation. Originality/value: This paper adds the following: Perceptions of residents of a refurbishment programme in sheltered housing and the impact on their well-being. Perceptions of residents about social activities after a refurbishment programme. Perceptions of residents about the impact of physical changes to their sheltered housing schemes and impact on their internal accessibility to the improvements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are many applications controlled by the brain signals to bridge the gap in the digital divide between the disabled and the non-disabled people. The deployment of novel assistive technologies using brain-computer interface (BCI) will go a long way toward achieving this lofty goal, especially after the successes demonstrated by these technologies in the daily life of people with severe disabilities. This paper contributes in this direction by proposing an integrated framework to control the operating system functionalities using Electroencephalography signals. Different signal processing algorithms were applied to remove artifacts, extract features, and classify trials. The proposed approach includes different classification algorithms dedicated to detecting the P300 responses efficiently. The predicted commands passed through a socket to the API system, permitting the control of the operating system functionalities. The proposed system outperformed those obtained by the winners of the BCI competition and reached an accuracy average of 94.5% according to the offline approach. The framework was evaluated according to the online process and achieved an excellent accuracy attaining 97% for some users but not less than 90% for others. The suggested framework enhances the information accessibility for people with severe disabilities and helps them perform their daily tasks efficiently. It permits the interaction between the user and personal computers through the brain signals without any muscular efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

this paper presents the development of a guide for the design of Higher Education Institutions (hei) websites based on the wcag 2.1 standard applied to visual disabilities. For this purpose, proposals that guide the design of accessible hei websites were identified, based on the findings and the wcag 2.1 standard; a guide that facilitates the design of hei websites applied to visual disabilities was specified; then the level of compliance obtained by the Univida website when applying the proposed guide was evaluated. The taw online tool was used as the evaluation method. The results show that the proposals analyzed focus on evaluating the accessibility of websites; however, none of them are specifically oriented to webmasters, developers and web designers, nor do they focus on the design of hei websites for the visually impaired. It was also evidenced that, when applying the guide on the selected website, from a total of 433 errors in the first analysis it was reduced to 14 in a second analysis for compliance levels a, aa and aaa. This work allows us to conclude that there is a growing interest among researchers and higher education institutions in designing inclusive institutional websites and virtual learning platforms, which not only consider the information needs and the attractive impact of their design, but also focus on the population with disabilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This two-year (2016–2018) study aimed to identify what a good life is for Aboriginal people with disability in remote Central Australia and how service providers can support them to achieve a good life. This paper presents the findings that relate to barriers to delivering services for Aboriginal people with disability. In-depth interviews and focus groups were held with Aboriginal people with disability and their carers aged at least 18 years from the Ngaanyatjarra Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (NPY) Lands and community organisations providing services there. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. There were 109 participants, of whom 47 were workers in service provider organisations and 62 were Aboriginal people. From the data, barriers to delivering services to support Aboriginal people to live a good life and solutions to overcome the barriers, were identified and described under the headings of environmental barriers and systemic issues. We discuss the policy implications of these findings with regard to addressing Indigenous disadvantage and how governments, service providers, communities, and Aboriginal people with disability and their families can work in partnership to address these barriers. Indigenous people with disability living in remote and very remote communities experience significant access and equity barriers to culturally responsive services that enable them to live a socially and culturally engaged life. Localised government and service provider disability policy approaches in Indigenous communities need to focus on both environmental and systemic issues. Greater investment in local remote communities is required to build the capacity of Indigenous families to support Aboriginal people with a disability to live a culturally and socially included life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose. This paper reports findings from a project that sought to develop accessible guidelines for including people with dementia in qualitative interviews in a music therapy study, based on experience from people previously involved in qualitative music therapy research. Method. People with previous experience of qualitative music therapy research were invited to participate in semi-structured interviews about how the interview process could be made more accessible. Participants included four family-caregivers and three music therapy-researchers. Interview data were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings were used to develop guidelines for a subsequent study; reflections on the implementation of these guidelines are provided. Results. Five themes were identified: (a) motivators and barriers to participating in interviews; (b) pragmatic elements that impact interview participation; (c) relationship dynamics may impact the interview; (d) familiarity fosters comfort, enables preparation and support and (e) broader considerations for accessible research design. Conclusions. Themes identified align with reports from the extant literature. Reflections on implementation of the guidelines reveal the need for more clarity around the ethics of building rapport in qualitative research. Implications about future uses of the guidelines, including the use of music as a research tool are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both practice and research of accessible design in China are still in the initial stage, while the regulations and standardization of accessibility is taking shape. Under the framework of engineering standards based on instrumental rationality, to present the core value of humanism and to define the limitations of universal design in the standards are the key issues worth discussing continuously. By comparing the standards of China and abroad, this paper attempts to clarify the approaches for compiling the Accessibility Design Standards for Shenzhen. At the same time, it provides materials for discussion by showing the difficulties and assumptions during the compilation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dementia is generally considered to be one of the most pressing societal issues now and in the years to come. Although insights from different disciplines have contributed to a better understanding of dementia and the development of interventions targeting dementia symptoms, there is a lack of integration of insights from these different perspectives for the purposes of design for dementia. The aim of this paper is to show how insights from environmental psychology and advances in technology can inform a user-centred multidisciplinary design approach. To this end, first a brief meta-review of (systematic) reviews from the fields of assistive technology for dementia care and healing environments research is presented, after which gaps and opportunities for a multidisciplinary design approach are identified. To illustrate what such an approach could look like, two exploratory case studies are presented in which technology-enhanced prototypes of an experience handrail (aimed at facilitating wayfinding by providing meaningful sensory experiences) and a virtual nature installation (aimed at providing relaxation and stimulating social engagement) were implemented at a Dutch care centre for people with dementia. Preliminary evaluations indicate that these designs contribute to the wellbeing of people with dementia and confirm the fruitfulness of the design approach presented in this paper. Furthermore, this approach may not only provide a means to optimize existing environments and enhance ease of living, but may also lead to novel solutions to the challenges people with dementia face on a day-to-day basis, and improve their quality of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The assistive equipment provision process is routinely carried out with patients to mitigate fall risk factors via the fitment of assistive equipment within the home. However, currently, over 50% of assistive equipment is abandoned by the patients due to poor fit between the patient and the assistive equipment. This paper explores clinician perceptions of an early stage three-dimensional measurement aid prototype, which provides enhanced assistive equipment provision process guidance to clinicians. Ten occupational therapists trialled the three-dimensional measurement aid prototype application; think-aloud and semi-structured interview data was collected. Usability was measured with the System Usability Scale. Participants scored three-dimensional measurement aid prototype as 'excellent' and agreed strongly with items relating to the usability and learnability of the application. The qualitative analysis identified opportunities for improving existing practice, including, improved interpretation/recording measurements; enhanced collaborative practice within the assistive equipment provision process. Future research is needed to determine the clinical utility of this application compared with two-dimensional counterpart paper-based guidance leaflets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Visualizations are now widely used across disciplines to understand and communicate data. The benefit of visualizations lies in leveraging our natural visual perception. However, the sole dependency on vision can produce unintended discrimination against people with visual impairments. While the visualization field has seen enormous growth in recent years, supporting people with disabilities is much less explored. In this work, we examine approaches to support this marginalized user group, focusing on visual disabilities. We collected and analyzed papers published for the last 20 years on visualization accessibility. We mapped a design space for accessible visualization that includes seven dimensions: user group, literacy task, chart type, interaction, information granularity, sensory modality, assistive technology. We described the current knowledge gap in light of the latest advances in visualization and presented a preliminary accessibility model by synthesizing findings from existing research. Finally, we reflected on the dimensions and discussed opportunities and challenges for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we report on the development and refinement of a progressive physical exercise training and home modification intervention for older people with a risk of falling located in Germany by using the United Kingdom's Medical Research Council framework. The process was iterative and six phases of development emerged: (1) establishing an intervention development group, (2) identifying the evidence on interventions, (3) identifying a theory to underpin the intervention, (4) designing the intervention components, (5) drafting the intervention manual and training course, and (6) piloting and refining of intervention components. The result was an evidence-based, theory-informed, and user-endorsed intervention: FIT-at-Home. This intervention comprised nine individual sessions over 12 weeks and two follow-up booster sessions delivered by trained occupational therapists. A feasibility study demonstrated the acceptance and feasibility of intervention delivery. Users responses were generally favorable and included recommendations about the intervention manual, mode of delivery of the home hazard assessment, and producing a manual for older people. We developed a feasible home-based lifestyle-integrated physical exercise training and home modification intervention for older people with a risk of falling by using a systematic approach. Implications include how this intervention could enrich occupational therapy fall prevention strategy in older people living at home. Falls in older people represent a major public health concern and occupational therapists in rehabilitation practice are encouraged to apply evidence-based interventions that reduce the risk of falls in older people living in a community. Many physical and environmental fall risks are modifiable by lifestyle changes such as physical exercise training, home safety assessment, and home modification. We developed a home-based balance and strength exercise training and home modification intervention that aims to improve strength, balance, and home safety. This study indicates that older people, at risk of falling, with functional limitations, and limited mobility, who participated in the FIT-at-Home intervention, felt that exercising at home suited them best. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As elements of culture and also as social-cultural phenomena, religion and denomination are the sources of creating change, difference and contrast in various places. Although indifference has been practically the approach adopted toward religion and its belongings in the contemporary world and today's human life, the religious and Islamic discussions have been among the important issues drawing a lot of attentions from the contemporaries in the theoretical arena. Islam has paid a particular attention to the house as the place of living and calmness for the human beings and believes in certain conditions for it. The theoretical foundations of Islamic mindset are neglected in today's houses so they are in need of revitalization in their designs and redesigning based on the original Islamic patterns. Nowadays, spatial meaningfulness is among the most important solutions of granting quality to the architectural spaces, especially residential spaces, and the designers and architects are making efforts in the area of paying attention to such concepts as calmness that can subsequently lead to the psychological health. The environmental designers and planners have paid attention to the quality of spaces and the role of perceptional indicators in forming the various spaces with the development of the human communities and appearance of meanings' gaps in the constructed spaces. These are the spaces that induce a sense of tranquility and pleasure followed by a sense of attachment and identity to the audience mind and revive the feelings of being present and existent in them. In this article, the effect of the Islamic teachings on the architectural spaces and places as theoretical bases has been investigated in various areas. The current article has been conducted with the objective of investigating the Islamic architectural pattern related to the housing in the Holy Quran's ĀYĀT and the possibility of using it as an Islamic pattern as a result of doing research and exploration in the Holy Quran, Nemooneh Interpretation and relevant articles and books. The achievement of the Islamic pattern and methods for semantic qualification and their application to a place and creating of an environmental calmness followed by psychological health based on the Islamic teachings in the residential spaces are among the findings underlined by the present research paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores how to apply the principles of accommodations and universal design (UD) in research methods involved in quantitative research (e.g. questionnaires). In particular, we focus on how to make research more accessible for individuals with Learning Disabilities (LD), while also providing suggestions for potential participants of research more generally. This paper first reviews accommodations provided to students within an educational setting, focusing on the components of setting, timing, presentation and response format. Following this discussion, we discuss UD and how it can be adapted to the research process (e.g. the creation of surveys, and data collection). Next, we draw on components of accommodations and universal design to offer suggestions for those conducting research with individuals with LD. In closing, we provide a table with key UD and accommodation questions that researchers can use to guide questionnaire design thereby advancing the field when it comes to accessible research design. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the experiences of disabled sailors on board a tall sailing ship, adapted for accessibility. Eight disabled sailors kept audio diaries and created artwork during the voyages, as well as taking part in interviews afterwards. In reporting their accounts, we explored what it meant for participants to go to sea. We became particularly interested in embodied activities on board ship, the ways in which sailing created and highlighted new identities, and the social aspects of sailing in a team. Our account brings together some of the central concerns in Disability Studies with the perspectives of social practice theorists, and seeks to add layers of meaning to both approaches. Since this is a nautical project, the paper is structured by following the stages of going to sea, and in the words of one participant, we seek to 'join the dots between medical, academic and anecdotal knowledge'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The relationship between poverty and disability has continued to be contentious and relevant as it contributes to policies addressing the needs of disabled people. Yet, this remains complex and under-researched in the context of developing countries. The literature on disability has used isolated elements of the livelihood capitals: natural, human, physical, financial, and social capital. This article seeks to fill this gap by bringing evidence from the study undertaken in Hawassa, Ethiopia, by employing a sustainable livelihood framework holistically. By using a sustainable livelihood framework, the paper reveals that livelihood challenges resulting from disability are multifaceted and inter-related. Infrastructural inaccessibility and social discrimination compounded by structural factors limit the human, social, and financial capital of disabled people. Consequently, they depend on their family and NGOs as a source of financial capital (loan) and skill training; and engage in informal, vulnerable, and socially insecure livelihoods to survive. Different policies and practical measures are proposed to overcome this situation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As a developer of online open education resources that provide basic information about Westernmusic theory, notation, and acoustics, I undertook an action research project with the long-term goal of creating resources that were more accessible, particularly to independent learners pursuing their ownmusic-making goals. In order to better understand the situations and perspectives of real-world learner stakeholders, I sought participants among the self-motivated users of my open education resources, offering active help in designing and carrying out inquiries based on their goals. Eleven long-term participants provided insights that have subsequently affected my efforts to design more accessible open education resources, but the course of the study also revealed tensions and challenges related to the online action research methodology. I have reported elsewhere the study results as they relate to online music education. This paper focuses on action research issues raised in the course of the study, including open versus closed online actions, reaching disadvantaged communities and learners, and consciousness-raising at a distance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ensuring the accessibility of digital content is a priority for libraries. Digital collections continue to grow, and libraries seek feedback from users and use tools to diagnose and solve accessibility issues. As libraries grapple with this new landscape, they want to know where they stand amongst their peers, what mandates apply to their situations, and how library staff are being trained to address accessibility requirements, among other issues. In 2019, the LYRASIS consortium surveyed its large network of more than 1,000 member galleries, libraries, archives, and museums to discover how these member institutions are approaching accessibility. This paper represents highlights from that survey as well as examples of accessibility efforts from North Carolina State University Libraries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with an analysis of accessibility for students with visual impairment in IFRN distance education courses. The distance education of Natal Zona Leste Campus uses Moodle as an Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) as well as specific teaching materials for each course. Currently, several undergraduate and postgraduate courses in IFRN distance education have been receiving students with visual impairment (DV). In this article some initial theoretical foundations were made about the inclusion of people with disabilities and their accessibility in virtual environments. The article brings the result of an experiment in which two tests were performed. The first test using the WAVE tool and the second test with an undergraduate student with DV. The results were crossed and analyzed culminating in some recommendations for the educational design of the courses at work with some of the resources and activities most used in distance education offered by IFRN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]