Preiser W., Smith K.H. Universal Design Handbook
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9.4 PRINCIPLES, STANDARDS, AND GUIDELINES
product design, but feedback from UD experts indicated that vehicles were important enough to
warrant their own top-level heading.
All taxonomical hierarchies and thesauri are “living” entities and thus change with the introduction
of new terms and concepts and the evolution of existing terminology. An example is the difficulty the
team encountered when trying to differentiate all the various types of assisted-living facilities and hous-
ing for older people. UD practitioners use a variety of precise terms when describing these structures,
which posed the problem of reaching consensus.
9.5 QUERYING THE FIELD
To make the thesaurus valuable to the universal design community, the project team understood that the
community itself needed to evaluate it. When a draft version of the thesaurus and the taxonomy was
finished, it was forwarded to selected practitioners in the field. It was explained that the purpose of the
thesaurus was to facilitate the storage, labeling, description, and retrieval of UD information. Responses
from practitioners with significant expertise have thus assisted with the development of the first universal
design vocabulary, which included both a thesaurus and a taxonomy for description and classification. If
the terms didn’t make sense to UD practitioners, the terms wouldn’t be used. It was offered to the com-
munity with the following questions to assist their review:
• Does it reflect contemporary terminology? Are these the terms you are likely to use? Example:
automobiles instead of cars but buses instead of autobuses
• When a choice is made between using one term and another, will it make sense to someone in the
UD field? Two examples are elderly instead of aged and ambulation instead of walking.
• Does it leave room for growth as more terms are added? This asked, in essence, if the upper-level
headings were broad enough to encompass the field’s main areas of endeavor and still allow new
terms to be included when necessary. Example: nonresidential and residential likely cover all built
structures at the highest description level.
• Does it allow for grouping of like images? When searching well-indexed information, is the
retrieval consistent with the search terms employed?
Material that is cataloged using a well-constructed and managed thesaurus will likely be more con-
sistently retrieved when a search is performed. A Google keyword search, by contrast, forces users
to wade through many pages of results that are not systematically organized, sometimes making the
searcher use multiple terms or perform multiple searches. Information that is consistently described
according to a single set of rules, e.g., a thesaurus, will quickly give users the search results they
need. Consistent metadata, such as titles and “alt text” for images, can assist in the efficient and
accurate retrieval of items from millions of objects.
To assist their evaluation, UD practitioners were encouraged to ask librarians and other information pro-
fessionals experienced in handling information for acquisition, cataloging, description, storage, and retrieval
their opinions of the thesaurus and its potential value to the field of universal design. As a result, the thesau-
rus team received many terms not originally included, were advised of alternative language or phrasing for
existing terms, and received recommendations to delete terms that did not apply or were inappropriate.
9.6 THE UNIVERSAL DESIGN THESAURUS
The Universal Design Thesaurus is organized, at its highest level, around four main categories of the built
environment:
• Nonresidential
• Residential
• Product design
• Transportation vehicles
THE UNIVERSAL DESIGN THESAURUS: CREATING A DESCRIPTIVE LANGUAGE FOR OUR FIELD 9.5
Within the larger categories are subcategories going to no more than four, and usually three, levels
of description. Examples include those shown in Table 9.1.
Subject headings serve to more specifically describe objects or concepts under broad categories.
An example is shirts under the category clothing. The main subject areas in the thesaurus are build-
ing components, yard and landscape elements, age groups, physical movements, furniture compo-
nents, impairments, disabilities, disorders, information technology, and other specific UD concepts
such as social equity and inclusion. Below is an example of how an image is cataloged using the
UDT. (See Fig. 9.1, Table 9.2.)
The thesaurus, taxonomy, and UD principles work together to describe an image fully using a
threefold approach. The taxonomy or hierarchy serves the purpose of setting the stage or describing
the UD product or environment. The thesaurus or subject headings are used to fill in other pertinent
terminology and describe the images with greater precision. The assignment of a title, a description,
and other metadata provides specific details that distinguish objects (in this case, an image) within
the larger groupings created by categories and subject headings.
The UDT, however, only begins to set the context for describing and evaluating environments
or other designed outcomes. The UD principles provide yet another standardized rubric to assign
TABLE 9.1 The Four Main Categories of the Universal Design Thesaurus and Samples of Sub-Categories
Category (Level 1) Subcategory (Level 2) Subcategory (Level 3) Subcategory (Level 4)
Nonresidential Communication structures Telephone booths
Residential Homes for the elderly Assisted living facilities
Product design Containers Containers for hygiene Soap dispensers
Transportation vehicles Automobiles
FIGURE 9.1 Adjacent escalators and elevators in mall offer similar routes of travel for everyone.
Long Description: Locating the elevator and escalators together avoids segregating group
members using different modes of mobility. The elevator is adjacent to and between up and
down escalators in a shopping mall. Two women, one with a baby carriage, wait for the elevator.
Another woman is about to ride the escalator with her walking child.
9.6 PRINCIPLES, STANDARDS, AND GUIDELINES
meaning to an image. For example, Fig. 9.1 could be described using five of the seven Principles of
Universal Design, and several of the related guidelines as shown in Table 9.3.
9.7 ACQUIRING AND USING THE UNIVERSAL
DESIGN THESAURUS
For easy access, and to encourage continual use and improvement, the UDT is available on the World
Wide Web from the R. L. Mace Universal Design Institute web site at this address: www.udinstitute.
org. Examples of its use can also be found on the site. The UDT is available for unconstrained use,
royalty-free, and with the sole requirement of acknowledgment of the copyright holders.
TABLE 9.2 Descriptive Elements of Figure 9.1
Title Locating the elevator and escalators together avoids segregating group members who use different
modes of mobility.
Description The elevator is adjacent to up-and-down escalators in a shopping mall. Two women, one with a baby
carriage, wait for the elevator. Another woman is about to ride the escalator with her walking child.
Category Nonresidential, commercial spaces, shopping centers, shopping malls
Subject heading Escalators, elevators, size differences, circumstantial disability, mobility impairment, families, children,
toddlers, infants
TABLE 9.3 Universal Design Principles and Guidelines That Apply to Figure 9.1
Principle 1:
Equitable use
1a. Provide the same means of use for all users: identical whenever possible; equivalent when not.
1b. Avoid segregating or stigmatizing any users.
1c. Provisions for privacy, security, and safety should be equally available to all users.
1d. Make the design appealing to all users.
Principle 2:
Flexibility in use
2a. Provide choice in methods of use.
Principle 3:
Simple and intuitive use
3a. Eliminate unnecessary complexity.
3b. Be consistent with user expectations and intuition.
3c. Accommodate a wide range of literacy and language skills.
Principle 6:
Low physical effort
6b. Use reasonable operating forces.
6d. Minimize sustained physical effort.
Principle 7:
Size and space for
approach and use
7d. Provide adequate space for the use of assistive devices or personal assistance.
• Download the thesaurus and guidelines from the Universal Design Institute web site: www.
udinstitute.org
• Review the examples on the web site.
• Begin the cataloging process by assigning the material to the appropriate top-level category.
• Work through the hierarchy down to the lowest category and subject heading level necessary.
• Assign appropriate universal design principles.
• Distinguish between similar materials in the same category and with the same subject
heading by assigning a title and description to the object.
THE UNIVERSAL DESIGN THESAURUS: CREATING A DESCRIPTIVE LANGUAGE FOR OUR FIELD 9.7
9.8 THE FUTURE OF THE UNIVERSAL DESIGN THESAURUS
The UDT is being considered for inclusion in the CDC’s Consolidated Health Thesaurus (CHT) to cover
the universal design subject domain. It will be offered to the Library of Congress Cataloging Department
as well as the NLM’s MeSH Team for inclusion in those respected thesauri. Once it is established in the
United States, it is hoped that the use of the UDT will be broadened to reflect the international character
of UD as a discipline devoted as it is to research and design for full usability and safety of the built
environment and designed objects across the full physical, cognitive, and cultural spectrum.
The hope of its creators, editors, and contributors is that it can usefully serve both UD practitio-
ners and the public in accessing information about the UD field. The relevance of the UDT, however,
will only be maintained if librarians, information specialists, and practitioners provide the feedback
necessary to its growth and currency. It has been proposed that a UDT editorial board be established
to solicit feedback and to review the thesaurus biennially.
9.9 METHODOLOGY
The creation of the UDT came about through the effort to strike a balance between how practitioners
think and how librarians approach categorization and description. Its growth and refinement is, there-
fore, a collaborative effort reflective more of qualitative research methods in which the focus is on
holistic and contextual understanding than of reductionist and isolationist viewpoints informing most
quantitative research. Our qualitative research approach to data collection was a variant of grounded
theory practice, which emphasizes the discovery of participants’ main concerns in storing and retriev-
ing documents, photographs, etc. related to the UD field and how they resolve them. In this case, UD
practitioners responded to our questions about how they dealt with information categorization. It was
from these data that we affirmed our hypothesis that a Universal Design Thesaurus would be useful to
field practitioners. For this project, there were no “right” or “wrong” responses to our inquiries; what
mattered was relevance, fit, workability, and modifiability consistent with grounded theory practice.
Our data forms centered mainly on surveying and interviewing of subjects.
The methodology the authors used within grounded theory practice was participatory action research
(PAR). A recognized form of experimental research, PAR focuses on the effects of the researchers’
direct actions of practice within a participatory community to achieve the goal of improving the per-
formance quality of the community as a whole or within a specific area of concern. The authors’ goal
was that of addressing, in this case, the difficulty of categorizing documents, images, etc. in the field
of universal design, an identified problem common to the field. Participatory action research involves
direct participation in a dynamic research process, while monitoring and evaluating the effects of the
researcher’s actions with the aim of improving UD practice, at least in regard to language standardiza-
tion and information categorization. Action research is a way to increase understanding of how change
in practitioners’ actions or practices can mutually benefit the wider UD community of practitioners.
Although it has been criticized for lacking adequate methodological rigor, a focus on the end result
justifies taking the position that the sacrifice of some methodological and technical rigor is well worth
the additional validity and practical significance gained through this research approach.
9.10 BIBLIOGRAPHY
Art & Architecture Thesaurus (AAT), http://www.getty.edu/research/conducting_research/vocabularies/aat/. Accessed
Mar. 3, 2009.
Duncan R., Universal Design—Clarification and Development: A Report for the Ministry of the Environment,
Government of Norway, Raleigh, N.C.: College of Design, North Carolina State University, 2007.
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH), http://www.loc.gov/aba/cataloging/subject/. Accessed Mar. 3,
2009.
9.8 PRINCIPLES, STANDARDS, AND GUIDELINES
Library of Congress Thesaurus of Graphic Materials, http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/tgm1/. Accessed Mar. 3, 2009.
Medical Subject Headings (MeSH), http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mesh/. Accessed Mar. 3, 2009.
National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD), http://www.cdc.gov/NCBDDD/.
Accessed Mar. 3, 2009.
Principles of Universal Design, Chapel Hill, N.C.: R .L. Mace Universal Design Institute (UDI), http://www.
udinstitute.org/principles.php. Accessed Mar. 3, 2009.
Public Health Image Library (PHIL), http://phil.cdc.gov/phil/home.asp. Accessed Mar. 3, 2009.
INTERNATIONAL
PERSPECTIVES
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CHAPTER 10
NORWAY’S PLANNING
APPROACH TO IMPLEMENT
UNIVERSAL DESIGN
Olav Rand Bringa, Einar Lund, and Kristi Ringard
10.1 INTRODUCTION
In 1997, the Norwegian government began an effort to develop more integrated and comprehensive
planning for accessibility and universal design. This chapter describes the policies of the Norwegian
government.
Every country chooses a way of conducting policy based on political priorities, political tradition,
and the economic situation. When it comes to implementing the policy of accessibility for people
with disabilities, there appeared to be some general characteristics shared worldwide 10 years ago:
• Focus on high-level national issues
• Lack of visible and effective objectives at other levels
• Concentration of responsibility in the social sector
• Lack of responsibility in other sectors
The Norwegian government started to look into this situation, trying to find a strategy that would
accelerate the implementation and quality of accessibility in the built environment on a national
basis. Interest now turned to the political and professional planning processes in counties and
municipalities. The master plans for these administrative levels refer to the directions for how major
political issues shall be implemented and financed in the coming years. These plans must include
national objectives and local priorities, and they must comply with all legal and regulatory require-
ments. A survey conducted in 190 municipalities, out of a total of 431, showed that 17.2 percent had
accessibility objectives for people with disabilities in their plans for the physical development of the
municipality. Just over 3 percent had made these objectives binding by law (Hanssen and Stokke,
1999). This percentage is much lower than that for national objectives such as industrial develop-
ment, general housing policy, and considerations for the living conditions of children.
10.2 PLANNING—NEW POSSIBILITIES
In searching for possible obstacles and ways to improve the results of the planning processes, commu-
nity planners and advocacy organizations were both asked to give their opinions and to suggest solutions.
10.3
10.4 INTERNATIONAL PERSPECTIVES
It became evident that planners were positive about including accessibility, but they considered acces-
sibility to be a question of details, and not an issue for master plans, as well as local plans and develop-
ment plans. When asked to define what they needed to incorporate universal design into master plans, the
planners rather surprisingly rejected the idea of producing more guidelines (Høyland and Nistov, 1999).
They argued that they already had too many manuals on accessibility and universal design from too
many sources. They pointed out that their primary requirements for doing a better job with accessibility
for people with disabilities were the upgrading of skills and better planning tools. They suggested that
both planners and representatives of user organizations should be given the opportunity to improve their
skills and qualifications locally through seminars, as well as at colleges and universities. Their preferred
tools were concise information on planning and universal design, as well as references to the most
important information. They emphasized that the authorities should be more precise in describing policy,
guidelines, and solutions, and that examples of good practice were preferred and useful information was
helpful.
A report developed by a research institute served as the basis for the strategic discussions with the
organizations. It pointed out some important issues to be considered (Saglie, 1999). The responsibility
of the local communities to take initiatives and marshal the user participation processes to suit all users
was underlined, and the need for training and information was established. Based on the evaluation
of previous pilot projects, the organizations were urged to give priority to subjects that they felt were
important, and to choose to be represented in processes where their influence would be as effective as
possible. It was evident that the planning arena, where strategic priorities are established and work is
coordinated, did not recognize accessibility as an issue. At the same time improvements could obvi-
ously be achieved, and many parts of the strategies for obtaining better results were clear.
These aspects were carefully considered to make accessibility a key issue in planning in the 4-year
program launched by the Norwegian government in 1998.
FIGURE 10.1 The Old City of Kongsvinger with buildings from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries is situated
on the hillside leading up to the Kongsvinger Fortress. The city of Kongsvinger included universal design in the develop-
ment of the present city center by the foot of the fortress hill.
Long description: This photo shows the city of Kongsvinger with the old city with houses from the seventeenth and
eighteenth centuries in the foreground. The landscape slopes down to the river where the present city center is located.
NORWAY’S PLANNING APPROACH TO IMPLEMENT UNIVERSAL DESIGN 10.5
10.3 THE “PLANNING FOR ALL” PRIORITY AREA, 1998–2002
The Ministry of the Environment, which is the planning authority, was responsible for the program.
The objective was to introduce accessibility as a high-level goal in plans and to integrate the issue
in all the relevant parts of the plans. Using any means available, laws should be evaluated, direc-
tives issued to clarify national policy, research launched, development of methods carried out, pilot
projects conducted, and a series of educational programs supported.
Accessibility-for-All Directive
Using the existing laws, relevant political resolutions, and available results from research and pilot projects,
a directive was issued in late 1999. The directive “Accessibility for All,” which is still effective, was based
on universal design thinking and clarifies national policy in the field of planning for all. The main issues
include the following: the objective of accessibility for all should be included in master plans and support-
ive plans; user participation should begin with dialogue in the early stages of the planning processes; and
high-level authorities may stop plans that do not fulfill these requirements. In Norway, all municipalities are
obligated to have an approved master plan covering priority activities for the coming 4-year period.
In addition to these formal and political instructions for the planning process, the directive defines
accessibility in a broad context, covering national policies and regulations for land use, road build-
ing, city design, pollution, and noise control. The goal was to provide basic, easy-to-handle areas of
concentration within the existing mainstream planning concerns. In all these aspects, accessibility
in line with universal design was introduced with a focus on the technical requirements concerning
people with disabilities.
Pilot Projects
Important information and knowledge on how the Ministry of the Environment should conduct the
work and move forward was to be supplied by 20 pilot projects in counties and communities. The
pilot projects all had the same objective: introduction of accessibility and universal design thinking
in the actual planning. Various strategies were used to test the best practical way to achieve this in
the pilot projects. The projects used, in general, one of two main approaches:
1. Universal design applied directly to the ordinary planning process
2. Universal design introduced in a special plan developed with a focus on accessibility for people
with disabilities
It was important to establish knowledge on which of these approaches was more effective and
reliable in view of the objectives to be achieved. In 1997, the latter approach was the one that had
been used more, and many argued that a plan with a special focus was necessary to bring the issues
of universal design onto the agenda. The pilot projects dealt with different types of plans and a
variety of focused themes. Four projects involved county plans. Most of the projects dealt with com-
munity master plans, development plans, and thematic plans for recreation and historic areas.
Evaluation
An external evaluation of the priority area “Planning for All” was presented in 2002 (Hanssen and Stokke,
2002). The evaluation was carried out by the Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research.
The main conclusion was that the program had had a positive effect on planning. The effect was
most noticeable in relation to participation from people with disabilities. This was one of the main
objectives of the priority area. In 1999, 37.3 percent of the municipalities answered that they had organ-
ized participation that included people with disabilities. This had increased to 45.2 percent in 2002.