Quantifying Exclusion for Tasks Related to Product Interaction

Abstract

Inclusive design aims to enable more people to use mainstream products, services and environments, especially those with minor ability loss. In this context, a mainstream product refers to one that is readily available “off-the-shelf” in competitive markets, produced according to economies of scale. However, there will often be an inevitable limit to the level of ability loss that can be accommodated by such designs, whilst keeping the production volume and styling suitable for mass-market sales at an appropriate price point. Setting appropriate targets for an inclusive design therefore requires understanding the trade-offs between the number of people who are unable to perform tasks that relate to different levels of ability loss, within all the types of ability that are required to interact with the product. Understanding these trade-offs requires a single data source that covers all of these types of ability loss, yet the 1996/97 Disability follow-up survey (DFS) (Grundy et al., 1999) remains the most recent UK dataset that covers all such aspects of ability loss (Johnson et al., 2009).