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Information Environment & Cognition

Issues Related to the Information Environment

People with cognitive limitations experience problems with their attention span, memory, ability to sequence information, prioritizing, and processing new information.  To assist them with processing and retaining information, people with cognitive limitations require information to have a clear design with plain language.  Unfortunately, the trend today is to create the flashiest website, the most creative brochures, etc.  If information is not clearly presented, people with cognitive limitations will have a difficult time processing the information.  The practice of creating information in plain language not only helps people with cognitive limitations but also people with low literacy or for whom English is a second language.  

Examples of Problems

  • A college makes a brochure on stalking. They decide to include lots of color and images to catch the eye and interest of students. Unfortunately, the brochure is so busy, that it proves difficult for students with learning disabilities to read.
  • An outreach meeting is scheduled with the community. The meeting leader uses a large-sized newsprint pad for capturing information as she talks. However, when she has used up a page, she flips it and begins a new one.  In addition, because she is writing quickly, her handwriting is poor.  Participants with cognitive limitations are not provided with guidance about what to prioritize and remember, nor are they provided with materials to bring home.  Most of the information provided by the meeting leader is not retained.  he information she is providing becomes so overwhelming that many in attendance tune her out.  Without . They did not know which information to prioritize and make sure to remember and they never saw the information again.
  • A survivor has just completed an employment program training for an entry-level job in a medical area, and is hired at the end of the program. She has applied for a special program for people with disabilities that will allow her to keep her benefits during a transition to working. As she is preparing for her new life, she receives a 15 page legal document in the mail from the state DSS office that on the last page notifies her that her benefits have been terminated. The survivor reads at a 6th-grade level and has no idea that she has lost her health insurance. The document is written at a twelfth grade reading level and although she reads it over, she cannot make sense of what it actually says. She throws it away, missing an opportunity to address a mistake made by DSS in cutting her from benefits.
  • A survivor with an intellectual limitation cannot remember the name of the staff person with whom she met on arrival and wants to speak to her again. She cannot describe her to other staff.

Suggested Solutions

  • When creating informational documents, order the information visually.  Use images that are clear and direct rather than subtle and avoid long, unbroken narratives without clues to a hierarchy of information.
  • Use clear and simple language rather than abstract, bureaucratic or insider information.
  • Offermultiple forms of the information which can vary from verbal and written to the use of assistive technology.
  • Solutions do not have to be specialized for people with cognitive difficulties. A universal approach can be applied in many situations.
  • During counseling or safety-planning: 
    • Verbally acknowledge upfront to the survivor that the number one priority is that you each understand each other.
    • Come up with a mutually agreeable system for signaling when the survivor needs a moment: “If you are having trouble thinking or concentrating at any time while we talk, let’s come up with a way for you to signal me. The signal means that you need a moment before we continue. Perhaps you can raise your hand like this? Perhaps, turn this piece of paper over? That way you can interrupt me.” It should be offered even if the survivor doesn’t have the confidence or expectation that she can use it.
    • Because of diverse cultural expectations, low self-esteem, or general fear of authority, many survivors may not be able to assert when she is missing information, confused, disoriented, or in disagreement. The provider can check in with the survivor throughout conversation by asking the survivor to paraphrase instructions or information to be remembered.
    • A person may need extra help with learning: working with one-step-at-time instructions, repeating until understood, using graphic depictions of routines and steps, role-playing, or reducing expectations of what can be learned in one session.
    • Give everyone a second bite at important information. Provide it in writing and verbally.
  • See the Creating Welcoming Environments section on Information Environment that describes Making Information Understandable.
  • For people with cognitive limitations, a redundancy of wayfinding clues is needed for finding paths of travel through a building. Obvious cues reduce people’s anxiety about finding their way. Being lost provokes anxiety and frustration. Examine paths - the path from an entrance to a waiting area, the path to an elevator, the path to a group meeting room, the path to a restroom. Investigate these routes of travel by asking:
    • Do you have clear signage marking the way?
    • Is the signage at a reasonable height and contrast to be seen at the point where someone enters the area?
    • Do floors have colored lines along the pathways if the building is large or are there other cues such as interior landmarks – unusual lamps or objects or color changes of doors?
    • Is the color contrast between walls and floors clear?
    • If the restroom is on another level, is that clearly stated anywhere, especially at the entrance and next to an elevator?
  • When providers use other organizations’ buildings for community meetings, prevention workshops, or support groups, providers should investigate the paths of travel in the building to the meeting space, to restrooms, and to drinking fountains. If anything is not clearly marked, post temporary signs with a piece of tape to help guide people.
  • In shelter areas with storage, like art rooms and kitchens, assist people’s memory with cues for locations of items by using color-coded plus text labels.
  • Post instructions on or next to equipment like microwaves.
  • Post instructions for clean-up in large fonts, with numbers, simple language and with graphics if possible. Picture-diagrams with arrows are useful if decisions affect which steps to take.
  • A small amenity common among self-advocates is the pairing of names and photographs. It can be done on a name badge or a business card and also posted somewhere accessible to survivors so someone can check on a name. Everyone will appreciate it.