In order to recognize the vital properties of technologies that constrain how human interact with them and keep a balance between a realist and a constructivist points of view on technology, without falling back into objectivism or technological determinism, Hutchby (2001) resorted to Gibson (1979; 1982)'s concept of "affordance" to stress that the possibilities of actions offer by technologies for human to interact is constrained due to their properties, i.e. affordance. Hutchby reminded his readers to "pay more attention to the material substratum which underpins the very possibility of different courses of action in relation to an artefact (2001, 450)."
(And in a case revisited on a scene of a usability trial,...)
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[swipe]
Compared to dedicated AAC devices, according to my research participants, users, including school teachers, speech and language therapists, parents and people with communication difficulties, have more confidence using iPads. Indeed, many users find dedicated AAC devices a bit frightening. One of my research participant, Alexander, who works in a service providing organization as a technician, told me that, "people who might find the technology quite daunting... We come across care staff and teachers, and assistants who can genuinely be afraid that if they do the wrong thing, they can damage this relatively expensive piece of equipment, you know (Interview 2020/02/21)." And thus, Alexander continuing explaining to me that for them working in service providing organizations, their work is not simply providing training to prospective users, but to "bring users up to that comfort level." But there seems to be less problem with iPad. Another of my research participant, Oliver, who works for an AAC company in business development, provided a similar description on his clients. He told me, "I can see, you know, this might be a child that's going to likely to throw it across the room, so they think to themselves well I'll just go for an iPad in a foam case cos I think that offers them the best protection. And it's cheap to replace if they do break it (Interview 2019/10/02)." Users, including direct users and indirect users like schoolteachers, sometimes feel intimidated when facing dedicated AAC devices. Their high prices could be one of the reasons, but lack of training and implementation to use the devices could also be the causes and lead to the high abandonment of these devices. However, the lower prices of AAC apps on iPads or other tablets make the use of devices more approachable. This could also be caused by the popularization of smart devices in general, making the use of these devices less intimidating. This phenomenon is also stated by my interviewee, Lily, who works for a service-providing organization as a speech and language therapist (Interview 2020/02/21).
In fact, it is not only because of the prices that make dedicated AAC devices 'daunting' and iPad friendly. Many prospective users come to language therapists and ask for AAC apps that can work on iPad because they already have an iPad at home or other similar smart portable devices that they are so familiar with. And even prospective users do not have an iPad at home, the first reaction a pupil receives an iPad, as you may have already guessed, yes, is to swipe it or touch any possible buttons on the screen. The few possible actions afforded by iPad, mainly swipe and touch, shape the ways users interact with similar tablets and touch screen devices.
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