I think such simulations can help folks gain a greater understanding of some of the challenges faced by the disabled, but they need to be used carefully and with intelligence. For instance, I really don’t want someone to “learn about blindness” by just wearing a blindfold for a day.
When a sighted person wears a blindfold, they generally end up feeling confused, disoriented, and pretty useless, ergo blind people must be disoriented, confused, and pretty useless. If you really want to understand blindness, try wearing a blindfold for a good six months minimum. Being blind for only part of the time doesn’t count, nor does staying at home all the time.
Or, if that way of learning about it is just a bit too inconvenient, you can always just ask one of us. :)
I don’t want to discourage anyone from trying a disability simulation if you are curious or you think it might help you find weaknesses in your design. However, just remember to verify any conclusions you reach, and keep in mind that real disabled people are much better at being disabled than you are.
I think such simulations can help folks gain a greater understanding of some of the challenges faced by the disabled, but they need to be used carefully and with intelligence. For instance, I really don’t want someone to “learn about blindness” by just wearing a blindfold for a day.
When a sighted person wears a blindfold, they generally end up feeling confused, disoriented, and pretty useless, ergo blind people must be disoriented, confused, and pretty useless. If you really want to understand blindness, try wearing a blindfold for a good six months minimum. Being blind for only part of the time doesn’t count, nor does staying at home all the time.
Or, if that way of learning about it is just a bit too inconvenient, you can always just ask one of us. :)
I don’t want to discourage anyone from trying a disability simulation if you are curious or you think it might help you find weaknesses in your design. However, just remember to verify any conclusions you reach, and keep in mind that real disabled people are much better at being disabled than you are.
You can read about a disability simulation done right in the April 1997 Braille Monitor.
posted by Aaron Cannon on Wednesday, Oct 08, 2008