It is ‘the entire idea that anything can or should be perfect in this universe of entropy and chaos, applied at the level of human bodies and ways of being’. The word ‘able’ signifies being ‘capable’, whereas disable marks a deviation from the capable body. ‘Ableism values certain abilities, which leads to disableism; the discrimination against the “less able.”’

University of North Texas

This article examines how people with disabilities experience the design of public urban spaces in a social housing area in Aarhus, Denmark. Drawing on 14 universal design walks conducted with 17 participants, the study shows how ableist design practices create physical, mental, and social constraints in everyday life.

Experiences with disabling barriers in urban spaces

Nielsen, C. H. (2026). ‘Although it’s a path, it still feels like an enclosure’ .– experiences with disabling barriers in urban spaces. Disability & Society, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2026.2659093

‘Although it’s a path, it still feels like an enclosure’ .– experiences with disabling barriers in urban spaces

The participants represented a wide range of diverse disabilities, including physical, psychological, cognitive, and sensory variations, and included, among others, users of wheelchairs, walkers, and canes, parents with strollers, people with anxiety, social anxiety, or PTSD, people with reading difficulties, dyslexia, or autism, as well as people with impaired vision, blindness, deafness, or particular sensory sensitivities to, for example, sound, light, or smells. Participants ranged in age from 28 to 82. 

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