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Pictures as Language

Henrik Danielsson1, Bodil Jönsson2 

1The Swedish Institute for Disability Research, Örebro and Linköping University, SWEDEN
2Certec, Department of Design Sciences, Lund University, SWEDEN

International Conference on Language and Visualisation, Stockholm, Sweden, November 8 - 9 , 2001

 

Summary

The purpose of this lecture is to shed light on a potential, and invite those who are interested to join in and make use of this potential. Here is the background:
Starting with the Isaac Project in 1993, Certec has developed a technological/educational concept based on pictures as language for people with limited spoken language or none at all. There are a number of case studies (our own and others) of the interaction between people with different types of cognitive disabilities and a multiplicity of personal digital photographs (over 1,000, often well over 10,000). There is also a growing and increasingly widespread use of digital photos in special educational facilities, care-giving services for disabled people, and in the fields of autism and psychiatry. Added to this are the experiences gained from a picture web board in which people involved in using pictures as language have been able to share their experiences with one another.

 

Picture collage: Thomas and Stig, cattails, Gun´s Garden and Abdulkader
We can provide examples of what has been done and document the effects. But still, 8 years later, we are unable to carry out sufficiently qualified and relevant analyses and assessments because we have not been able to find applicable explanatory models for the effects; neither have we found relevant fundamental theories supporting what we have observed. This is profoundly unsatisfactory and that is why we are now appealing for help.
If we, together, can identify relevant existing theoretical foundations, or come up with new useworthy ones, the effects can be at least twofold: On the one hand, we will better be able to understand and make use of the results achieved so far. On the other, with good theories as a basis, excellent prerequisites should exist for inspiration to an even more effective implementation than what we have hitherto accomplished.
The article contains a comprehensive description and references to Certec-related work in this area for the past 8 years, as well as a literature review that shows how difficult it has been to find a basis in established scientific research.

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Appendix (1.3 MB)

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Last modified: Friday December 18 2009