The Hidden Unwelcome: How Buildings Speak and Act

Immersive Virtual Reality, Tool for Accessible Design: Perceived Usability in an Interior Design Studio Setting

“…The use of immersive VR helped many to move past simply checking boxes on a list of standard requirements to fully consider the importance of human experience when designing accessible spaces (Perez Liebergesell et al, 2021). A prior study conducted by Chan (2020) supports this notion and explored students using immersive VR for environment design for users of wheelchairs and found that participants’ assessment of how well their design addressed the needs of the disabled decreased after seeing their design in an immersive virtual space.…”

“…However, students often struggle when interpreting two-dimensional (2D)-based ADA learning resources into three-dimensional (3D) spatial information, as they lack the knowledge to understand or transform 2D information into 3D spatial attributes while accurately visualizing design solutions at the correct real scale (Pober & Cook, 2019). Also, students may have a limited understanding of the difficulties that individuals with disabilities might experience (Perez Liebergesell et al, 2021). Therefore, the ADA Standards have often been perceived primarily as mandatory requirements rather than as means to encourage innovative design solutions for users who have special needs.…”

Manifesto for Democratic Education: Why And How?

“…Hadjiyanni (2020) advocated for CIDA standards to address “empathy,” “diversity,” and “critique” of the social, political, and physical influences affecting the design of built form. Tauke and Smith (2020), Paron (2020), Liebergesell et al (2021), and Zingoni Phielipp (2022) emphasized the use of inclusive design processes to promote social justice and freedom, particularly for people who are subject to oppressive hierarchies. While these viewpoints discuss the urgency for educators to challenge our institutional systems and accreditation bodies, they do not highlight the modes and pathways educators can take in their coursework to structurally change the discourse and produce active participants and leaders in society.…”

Creating Mindful Spaces: Educational Practices for Interior Design

“…Further, Danko (2003) stated that education should nurture “personal understanding and empathy which requires individuals to develop both an inward personal consciousness and an outward social-awareness of their role in the world” (p. 82). Opening our perspectives inwardly and outwardly may allow us to reflect on our own practices of inclusion/exclusion, suggested both within interior design (Pérez Liebergesell et al, 2021; Tauke & Smith, 2020) and mindfulness practices (Sucitto, 2018).…”

“…Rojas et al (2015) also discovered that mindfulness practices could strengthen empathic relationships by supporting a designer's inner awareness, which is essential for inclusive design. Lim et al (2021) expanded the notion of inclusive design that goes beyond the physical necessities (barrier-free and accessibility components) to account for psychosocial inclusivity, where interior designers have a significant role and responsibility (Paron, 2020;Pérez Liebergesell et al, 2021;Tauke & Smith, 2020).…”