This paper explores the intersection of Human-Comput- er Integration (HInt) and Critical Disability Studies (CDS) to explore how a posthumanistic epistemology in design can produce knowledge and know-how for the application do- mains of Health and Well-being. To use disability as a catalyst for innovation, a rethinking in the philosophy of sciences is necessary to establish knowledge production that emerges from new fluid politics that operate in ‘composition’ instead of ‘organization’. By placing an emphasis on nomadic practic- es that move beyond fixed borders, the encounters between Disability Studies or Human-Computer Integration can pro- duce situated, embodied and contingent design knowledge that study deviant and complex embodiment, and the kinds of alterations of human characteristics and abilities through technology. The first section of this paper explores the re- thinking in the philosophy of sciences. The second section ar- gues for a posthumanistic epistemology in design, which can be seen as the perfect way to produce situated, embodied and contingent design knowledge on the intersection of HInt and CDS. The final section of this paper highlights the poten- tial for the disciplines of Somatechnics and Soma Design to engage in each other’s body of knowledge to produce trans- formative knowledge through a shared focus on deviant em- bodiment and disability. The takeaway message of this paper is that the intersection of HInt and CDS potentially leads to new – otherwise overlooked - insights on the human-technol- ogy relationship, and therefore can take part in the historical strive for man-machine symbiosis. The posthumanist episte- mology allows for alternative ways of thinking that move be- yond the current Humanist perspective, and builds on a plu- ral, relational and expansive foundation for the development of design practices that catalyze innovation in the application domains of Health and Well-being.
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Parental involvement is a crucial force in children’s development, learning and success at school and in life [1]. Participation, defined by the World Health Organization as ‘a person’s involvement in life situations’ [2] for children means involvement in everyday activities, such as recreational, leisure, school and household activities [3]. Several authors use the term social participation emphasising the importance of engagement in social situations [4, 5]. Children’s participation in daily life is vital for healthy development, social and physical competencies, social-emotional well-being, sense of meaning and purpose in life [6]. Through participation in different social contexts, children gather the knowledge and skills needed to interact, play, work, and live with other people [4, 7, 8]. Unfortunately, research shows that children with a physical disability are at risk of lower participation in everyday activities [9]; they participate less frequently in almost all activities compared with children without physical disabilities [10, 11], have fewer friends and often feel socially isolated [12-14]. Parents, in particular, positively influence the participation of their children with a physical disability at school, at home and in the community [15]. They undertake many actions to improve their child’s participation in daily life [15, 16]. However, little information is available about what parents of children with a physical disability do to enable their child’s participation, what they come across and what kind of needs they have. The overall aim of this thesis was to investigate parents’ actions, challenges, and needs while enhancing the participation of their school-aged child with a physical disability. In order to achieve this aim, two steps have been made. In the first step, the literature has been examined to explore the topic of this thesis (actions, challenges and needs) and to clarify definitions for the concepts of participation and social participation. Second, for the purposes of giving breadth and depth of understanding of the topic of this thesis a mixed methods approach using three different empirical research methods [17-19], was applied to gather information from parents regarding their actions, challenges and needs.
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Parents have a vital influence on the participation of their child with a physical disability. The aim of this study is to gain insight into parents’ own daily actions, challenges, and needs while supporting their child with a physical disability at home, at school, and in the community. An additional objective of this study is to refine the preliminary thematic framework previously identified in a scoping review.
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