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Daria Spögler

„doppelpunkt" (double point) An inclusive parlour game to support successful communication between people with and without visual impairments

Lecturer: Mag.a Dr.in Margarita Köhl, MAS 

In a world shaped by visual design, barriers arise for blind and visually impaired people that prevent them from fully participating in society. Such barriers not only occur in physical mobility, but also in communication.Our perception of people with visual impairments is shaped by stereotypical images, which are caused by cultural and historical influences.This bachelor thesis deals with the question of how communication barriers between people with and without visual impairments can be counteracted and examines the role that design must play in this process. The aim is to contribute to the strengthening of the experience of self-efficacy of people with visual impairments and their integration into society. This work examines and presents by means of an example how the conception of a game represents an approach to multi-sensory and inclusive design. In this work the medium game is understood and described as a communication format.Through design intervention – as the inclusive parlour game doppelpunkt – differences in perception can be revealed and subsequently an understanding of the ideas and personal realities of others can be developed. Based on the method of inclusive design, a space is created that invites people to playfully explore and open up to their own perception, as well as the construction of reality and the ideas of others. By developing a new, haptic symbol system, equal conditions for all are created and successful communication between people with and without visual impairments is supported.The evaluation of the work as well as the game doppelpunkt in particular took place in the format of game testing under participating observation and subsequent narrative interviews, which were evaluated on the basis of the qualitative content analysis according to Mayring. The resulting findings on perception differences between people with and without visual impairments and the deep insight into the development of the haptic symbol system can contribute to the further development of inclusive design methods.