Challenging "The Hands of Technology"

Technology has been holding out the promise of facilitating greater autonomy and improving care for people in a situation of dependency. This trend is expected to grow and this is happening precisely at a time of expansion of the so-called Independent Living paradigm. In this context, however, disab...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Moyà-Köhler, Joan|||0000-0002-5746-6958, Domènech i Argemí, Miquel|||0000-0003-2854-3659
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2022
País:España
Institución:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Repositorio:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ddd.uab.cat:256053
Acceso en línea:https://ddd.uab.cat/record/256053
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.3390/ijerph19031701
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Intellectual disabilities
Technology
Independent living
Science and Technology Studies
Descripción
Sumario:Technology has been holding out the promise of facilitating greater autonomy and improving care for people in a situation of dependency. This trend is expected to grow and this is happening precisely at a time of expansion of the so-called Independent Living paradigm. In this context, however, disability activists are generally suspicious of approaches based on being "left" in the hands of technology. They instead advocate for "subordinating hands" to their ability to decide, a principle that stands in tension with the field of intellectual disability, where individuals are perceived as intrinsically unable to make "good decisions". Therefore, the aim of this paper is to provide insight into the uses and developments of technologies with regard to care and autonomy for people with intellectual disabilities. By ethnographically examining the case of a specific technology; QR (quick response) codes in the context of an independent living service, and in the framework of Science and Technology Studies and Disability Studies, the paper reveals the role and possibilities of care and autonomy technologies for people with intellectual disabilities. Based on these findings, and by thinking from what we could define as "within a sociotechnical assemblage", this paper aims to rethink the ways in which technologies for independent living can be used in the field.