고기능 욕실 제품에 대한 소비자 참여형의 사용성 평가 연구

In the last 10 years, the population of people with a disability in South Korea has been on a steadily rising trend, and with strides made in the field of medicine coupled with the rising standard of life, the population of people with a disability is also becoming more elderly. Despite this, it has been suggested that there is a lack of social infrastructure in place to support the increase in the elderly population, including those with a disability, and it has also been suggested that the living spaces and environments do not adequately meet the needs of neither people with a disability nor the elderly population, in terms of usability and accessibility. To overcome this problem, western countries, including European countries, have put out in the market various products targeting people with a disability as well as the elderly which are designed to increase the accessibility of their living environment. As for South Korea, there is a growing number of domestic companies looking to import these products. The purpose of this study was to assess the usability of high-end commercial bathroom products from Europe which are developed for the elderly or people with a disability, and the assessment was done targeting people with a physical disability in South Korea. In other words, the study aimed to determine whether the household products from Europe and overseas satisfy domestic consumers in terms of usability and accessibility. The bathroom products which were assessed included a sink, a shower chair, a shower faucet, and an armrest. They are among the products of a company in Europe that develops and sells healthcare products and rehabilitation aids. To carry out the study objective, a total of 5 people with a physical disability or encephalopathy were recruited as the test subjects. A task-centric usability assessment scenario was written up to conduct the usability assessment, and the test subjects did one-on-one interviews and performed the task scenario. From the usability assessment, the effectiveness, efficiency, and level of satisfaction were determined as the quantitative results, and from the interviews the test subjects’ opinions on the products were collected and systematized. This study assessed high-end bathroom products for their usability and accessibility for people with a disability as the user. Furthermore, it found that carrying out usability assessment by having the actual consumers (people with a disability and the elderly) try out various products is important when it comes to developing and commercializing products.