Date of Award:
8-2019
Document Type:
Dissertation
Degree Name:
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department:
English
Committee Chair(s)
Rylish Moeller
Committee
Rylish Moeller
Committee
Jared Colton
Committee
Rebecca Walton
Committee
Lynne McNeill
Committee
Matthew Wappett
Abstract
As a field intricately connected to human experience and interaction, technical and professional communication (TPC) is historically, ethically, and practically tooled to address issues of equality, diversity, and access. While these important issues have not always been the focal point of TPC, the recent turn toward social justice has scholars asking critical questions about how users access information, how specific design practices may privilege some and disenfranchise others, and how we can be more inclusive across our communication practices. In this dissertation, I argue that it is within reach of TPC to address the specific problem of access—the gap between what we believe to be accessible and what is actually accessible—and to begin to change specific norms (beliefs, standards, guidelines, etc.) that guide our practices. We change norms, or the typical way we do things, by exposing them, disrupting them, and developing new, more inclusive practices. I argue that we can create new norms that are liberated from unjust assumptions of embodied ability and include accessibility as a normalized part of the design process.
Checksum
35071802afd1584b2df6658747db0e6c
Recommended Citation
Huntsman, Sherena, "Changing Access: Building a Culture of Accessibility Within Normalized Technical Communication Practices" (2019). All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023. 7560.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/etd/7560
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