Overview
This workshop will focus on setting an agenda for research, practice and policy in support of inclusive design for the next generation of computer-based products.
The gradual convergence of TV, mobile, PC-based and other carriers affords the opportunity to inventively re-think how we can best interact and design social and communication services, suitable across divergent living spaces, lifestyles and environments. As such, there is enormous scope for innovation both for enhancement to existing services and exploration of the space of possible new digital services. The opportunity to facilitate desirable products in support of independent living, quality of life and social inclusion for the spectrum of users is enormous. However, the danger of a widening digital divide has also never been greater. Despite the potential benefits that new technology can provide, as with previous technology advances there are many marginalised groups that are being ignored or left behind as technology and applications advance.
Inclusive design has a number of aspects. Product and software designs for the population at large should be usable, acceptable and satisfying for the whole spectrum of users. Research should be orientated towards exploration of the space of possible utilities for those with specific needs, considering how technology can be used to open new possibilities and meet new challenges such as those posed by the rise in the ageing population. Both of these objectives require approaches to design that consider the outer margins of the user population rather than a notional average user. Participation and representation of those who represent the outer margins of the user spectrum is a key part of the design process. Equally, policy should where it can, be orientated towards design that is sensitive to the whole user spectrum. Facilitating a coordinated approach from concerned individuals to design, research and campaigning for policy is a key goal of this workshop.
A central theme of the workshop will be to convince those who work in, manage and make policy with regard to technology design that the outer edges of the user spectrum are the leading edges. The growing ageing population implies that the percentage of users with specific needs has and will continue to increase. This in turn implies that inclusiveness is a more important quality than ever before, where products are designed for a mass market. Equally, inclusion is at the leading edge of research into integrated domestic technologies, given the key goal of supporting independent living.