Role of Persons with a Disability in the Design Process

People with disabilities are profoundly affected by what is built around and for them, yet far too often they are not consulted during the various phases of a product's life cycle. People with disabilities need to be strong self-advocates and demand relevance to ensure that researchers ask the right questions and that engineers and designers develop products that will meet their needs. This article discusses the need for consumer involvement in all aspects of the design process, from initial concept to research and development and to influencing technology transfer and marketing.