The Anthropometrics of Disability - Designing Accessible Communities

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possibly methods. For example, full body scanning may not accommodate
people who use wheelchairs because parts of the wheelchairs obscure body
parts. Or, a raised platform accessible only by stairs may be used as part of
the apparatus.
All researchers need to clearly document their sampling methods to allow
future researchers to utilize the data collected. Many previous studies did an
inadequate job of documentation to the point where lots of questions have
been raised about the results. Funding agencies can insure that the samples
used in research are clearly documented.
Sample at the extremes, or “tails,” of the distribution of abilities. This will
insure that the full range of abilities are incorporated in the sample. This
refers specifically to samples or sub-samples of people with disabilities. This
may require alternatives to methods that require study participants to visit
laboratory settings. For example, the RERC on Universal Design at Buffalo
has developed methods that can be brought to the individual in order to
insure that lack of mobility in the community will not preclude people from
being part of the research sample.
Include a focus on elderly populations. In view of the rapid demographic shift
in industrialized societies toward a more mature demographic mix and the
rapid increase of older populations in the less developed world, sampling
more people of advanced age is critical to meet the information needs of the
21 st Century.
Include caregivers in anthropometric studies. This will help us to understand
how their presence has an impact on space needs and functional
requirements. They should be considered part of the “system” under study.
Recruit samples that are accessible for longitudinal studies. Long-term clients
of rehabilitation organizations are valuable targets for anthropometric
research because they can be studied over time. Changes related to aging
and technology (e.g. wheelchair design), in particular, are likely to make
significant differences in both static anthropometry and functional ability.
In using samples selected from rehabilitation clinics, obtain non-volunteer
samples wherever possible because volunteers may have higher levels of
motivation and lower levels of impairment than the entire population. This
would require instituting universal anthropometric screening for such
populations to insure that everyone is included.
Training is needed to educate researchers and peer reviewers who evaluate
research proposals on sampling issues related to disability. This training
should include information on the problems of recruitment from populations of
people with disabilities. It could also include effective sampling approaches
and their uses, recruitment techniques, how to fully document sample
construction, threats to validity, the relationship of sampling to the
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