LEADER 00000nam 2200397 4500
001 AAI3238529
005 20071119110207.5
008 071119s2006 eng d
020 9780542932427
035 (UMI)AAI3238529
040 UMI|cUMI
100 1 Cline, Holly Leeann
245 14 The evaluation of universal design kitchen features by
people in wheelchairs
300 217 p
500 Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-
10, Section: A, page: 3623
500 Adviser: Julia O. Beamish
502 Thesis (Ph.D.)--Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State
University, 2006
520 The purpose of the study was to investigate the
effectiveness of universal design kitchen features by
people using wheelchairs. The study examined the features
of the GE Real Life Design Kitchen in the Center for Real
Life Design at Virginia Tech and determined which
universal design features were beneficial to users in
wheelchairs. The specific objectives were: (1) to evaluate
the universal design features of the GE Real Life Design
Kitchen by people in wheelchairs, and (2) to examine how
the GE Real Life Design Kitchen is used by people in
wheelchairs as they prepare a meal in the space
520 Nine participants, with various disabilities, who use a
wheelchair on a daily basis were selected for the study.
The sample consisted of 5 male and 4 female participants
with ages ranging from 28-58 years old. Each participant
had varying levels of grip, strength, and memory as a
result of their disability. Data for this study were
collected through a variety of observation and
interviewing methods
520 The study was separated into four different sections/
activities; the pre-cooking interview, the universal
design evaluation, the cooking activity, and the post-
cooking interview. Each participant was asked to test
specific universal design features located in the GE Real
Life Design Kitchen and was given a set menu and asked to
prepare a meal
520 The results of this study determined that people who use a
wheelchair while cooking are very efficient and do not
require much counter space in order to prepare a meal.
Appliances with easy to read and use controls are
preferred and should be located within good visual range
of a person in a wheelchair to be effective. In addition,
it was determined that a pull-out cutting board and some
type of roll-out tray feature in a base cabinet is useful
to a person in a wheelchair. The results concurred with
existing recommendations concerning clear floor and open
knee spaces at the sink and cooktop areas, and also
discovered that clear floor and open knee space is useful
under a countertop microwave because it allows the
wheelchair user to get their body closer to the task
520 Results from this study cannot be generalized to a
national population of wheelchair users because of the
limitations of the sample. Results, however, are
significant in terms of providing consumers, cabinet and
appliance manufacturers, policy makers, and designers with
valuable insight and information concerning the inclusion
of universal design features in kitchens and environments
that accommodate the needs of all people, including the
person in a wheelchair. In addition, the results of this
study imply that not all universal design features
recommended in kitchen design are beneficial to people in
wheelchairs. Further investigation of some of the
universal design features tested is needed
590 School code: 0247
590 DDC
650 4 Home Economics
650 4 Design and Decorative Arts
650 4 Architecture
690 0386
690 0389
690 0729
710 20 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
773 0 |tDissertation Abstracts International|g67-10A
856 40 |uhttp://pqdd.sinica.edu.tw/twdaoapp/servlet/
advanced?query=3238529