Living Disability Theory: Reflections on Access, Research, and Design

TLDR

Accessibility research and disability studies are intertwined fields, with the former focusing on technology for impairments and the latter on understanding disability and challenging ableist systems to build an inclusive world. The paper reflexively analyzes the experiences of four scholars, focusing on moments of misunderstood disability and proposing ways to better integrate disability studies perspectives into accessibility research. The authors focus on moments when disability was misunderstood, such as expectations of clearly defined impairments. The study identifies three themes: ableism in research, oversimplification of disability, and the impact of human relationships on disability.

Abstract

Accessibility research and disability studies are intertwined fields focused on, respectively, building a world more inclusive of people with disability and understanding and elevating the lived experiences of disabled people. Accessibility research tends to focus on creating technology related to impairment, while disability studies focuses on understanding disability and advocating against ableist systems. Our paper presents a reflexive analysis of the experiences of three accessibility researchers and one disability studies scholar. We focus on moments when our disability was misunderstood and causes such as expecting clearly defined impairments. We derive three themes: ableism in research, oversimplification of disability, and human relationships around disability. From these themes, we suggest paths toward more strongly integrating disability studies perspectives and disabled people into accessibility research.