An Interdisciplinary Study on How to Provide Easy-to-Read Information to People with Language Difficulties Especially Those with Intellectual Disabilities

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K12987
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 08020:Social welfare-related
• Research Institution: Rissho University (2021); Shukutoku University Junior College (2018-2020)
• Principal Investigator: UCHINAMI Ayako 立正大学, 社会福祉学部, 准教授 (30551585)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2022-03-31
• Keywords: 知的障害 / 合理的配慮 / 情報保障 / 権利擁護 / わかりやすい版 / やさしい日本語 / 情報保障 / easy-to-read

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study is conducted to academically contribute to the social diffusion and expansion of providing easy-to-read information and communication support for people with intellectual disabilities and others who have difficulty understanding Japanese and are in a vulnerable position linguistically.
As a result, we found that it is essential to provide easy-to-read information to persons with intellectual disabilities when they are making decisions, and that information that will greatly influence their later lives, such as medical information, needs to be presented in plain language that is consistent with their senses and chronological order. Furthermore, qualitative research showed that easy-to-read information created for people with intellectual disabilities could be an easy-to-read information medium for people whose first language is sign language and people whose first language is not Japanese.

Free Research Field

社会福祉学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究では、知的障害者の言語・コミュニケーションにおける社会的障壁を問題視する観点を学術的に確立することを目指した。障害の「社会モデル」的観点から情報保障を理論的に考察し、析出された課題を社会の側が対応すべきものとして検討したことにより、社会福祉学をはじめとする諸学が構築してきた「知的障害」と情報保障のあり方への認識の転回を促す一助となりえたと考える。
また、本研究は各種の障害者・外国人居住者など、日本語による情報の理解に困難を生じている人々への支援に共通する知見の一端を明らかにした。情報保障に関する領域横断的な立場からの検討により、社会福祉学の内外における学際性を追究しえたと考える。