DRS2012 Bangkok Proceedings Vol 4 - Design Research Society

Shoe Design Requirements for the Physically Disabled Women
In conclusion, usability and functionality are directly associated with the wearing of the
object and its practical functions. They are also associated with its aesthetical-symbolic
issues, i.e., the wearing of the object also depends on its communication, on the wearer’s
context and also on its repertoire of previous experiences, which are subjective aspects.
Materials and Methods
This study was realized in 3 parts. In the first one, data from secondary sources about the
ergonomic, aesthetical and symbolical aspects of the design and shoe design were
collected. These aspects were organized regarding the traditional industrial way to buildup
shoes in Brazil.
The second part was a phenomenological study focusing on the wearers’ experiences
(tables 4 and 5). The semi-structured interviews were carried out in the wearers’ homes,
a familiar environment where they could feel more comfortable, so that some subjective
values could be risen was registered through pictures and videos. The wearer’s
adaptation displays their shoes making comments about their desire and presenting
solutions for adaptation. The survey also allowed the wearers to talk about brands,
shapes, colors or even aesthetical attributes they wished. Finally, they were asked to
express their opinion freely on two products (pictures 1 and 2), talking into account the
touchable perception of the materials, shaping of forms and analyses of chromatic
composition. As objects, such products also allowed remarks related to social pleasure.
Pictures 1 and 2: Adapted shoes used in the surveys.
Source: Roncoletta (2009)
It is worth mentioning that, due to the variety of foot and lower limb sizes, the women
interviewed were not allowed to wear the shoes – this is a restriction of the survey
method. The aspects risen in this study concerned the practical functions of the object
stemmed from accounts of the women’s own experience with previous footwear.
In this project, different opinions of individuals from “Instituto do Pé do Hospital das
Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo” (FMUSP) were
gathered. The word individual is used by the Commission of Ethics in Research
(CONEP/BR) to describe all people involved, being wearers, orthopedists,
physiotherapists or designers. All the interviewees were given feedback by the
researchers so that they could learn the partial results and approve the publication.
The interviews and the elements to build-up shoe design in the conclusion section were
gathered in the third part of this present study, the conclusion section.
Industrial build-up of the shoe design
The industrial build-up of the shoes is divided into two main parts:
a) the upper shoe, localized in the inner and outer upper part of the shoes and
b) the sole, localized in the inner and outer lower part.
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