Tojisha Consciousness
A person’s self-awareness begins in infancy. Reddy (2003) argues that infants sense that others are paying attention to them and that they are the object of that attention, and that this awareness leads to the representation of self and others in their minds. Infants gradually learn to share attention with others through such sensations as pleasure or pain when others pay attention to them and by vocalizing to draw attention to themselves. In other words, infants come to know their own existence through others (Tomasello, 1999).
We can sense the existence of our own mind. However, although we understand that the minds of others exist, it is difficult to accurately perceive other people’s state of mind and the world in which their minds exist; indeed, we can only guess.
When designing something for people, the ability to imagine the state of mind of various targets is required. However, as mentioned above, other people’s minds are much more ambiguous than our own, and it is difficult to understand them clearly.
The voices of the people involved can afford design practitioners clues to understanding the state of their minds and the world around them. The people involved here (Tojisha) are directly affected by the issues. In design, the average and majority consumer has often been considered the target. However, with the advocacy of universal design in the 1980s and the recent trend of inclusive design, it is expected that capturing the voices of minorities, who do not fall into the average zone among consumers, will lead to the identification of unexpected potential needs.
The following are voices of some of the people involved. Temple Grandin, a zoologist and autism spectrum disorder sufferer, has stated that she reads text with colored filters and uses light-toned paper for printing text because text with a strong contrast between the background and the text looks shaky. Ayaya, who suffers from Asperger’s Syndrome, stated that she has had difficulty speaking aloud since childhood, attributing it to difficulty hearing her own voice. She also describes her state of mind when speaking: “my thoughts and movements are in direct lines, and auditory feedback is difficult, so I consciously adjust my thoughts and vocal movements ‘manually.’”
The world of each person’s mind is something that can never be inferred by or from others.
Tojisha consciousness indicates an awareness of problems that are happening to others and an attitude of tackling them as if they were one’s own. It is the awareness of the voices of the people involved as one’s own business for working to solve their problems. Tojisha consciousness is indispensable for those engaged in design, but it takes time to acquire. This is because, as mentioned above, the state of mind of others and the world in which their minds exist can only be inferred.
This is why it is important for those engaged in design to listen to the voices of the people involved. As with self-consciousness, we understand ourselves through others. To know the people involved also leads us to knowing ourselves. We realize that we live in a society with many barriers, such as intolerance of different perceptions, thoughts, and behaviors, and stigmas against diseases and disabilities. We are also made aware of our own latent biases. Only when we are aware of them can we start to design in a way that is close to people.
References
- Grandin, Temple, Richard Panek(2013), The Autistic Brain: Thinking Across the Spectrum, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt（テンプル・グランディン、リチャード・パネク（2014）『自閉症の脳を読み解く どの様に考え、感じているのか』NHK出版）
- Reddy, Vasudevi (2003) “On being the object of attention: Imprecations for self-other consciousness,” Trend in Cognitive Sciences, 7, 397-402.
- Tomasello, Michael (1999) The Cultural Origins of Human Cognition, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press（マイケル・トマセロ（2006）『心とことばの起源を探る―文化と認知』大堀壽夫・中澤恒子・西村義樹・本多啓訳、勁草書房）
- Reddy, Vasudevi (2003) “On being the object of attention: Imprecations for self-other consciousness,” Trend in Cognitive Sciences, 7, 397-402.
- 綾屋紗月・熊谷晋一郎（2010）『つながりの作法 同じでもなく 違うでもなく』NHK出版