Strides toward making equine-assisted services an accessible recreational therapy through inclusive helmet design
Aviva Vincent et al.
What the paper says
Riding or being around horses is one form of therapeutic recreation. For safety, helmets are required by most practitioners, if not strongly encouraged. Yet, current helmet designs for equine activities remain largely inaccessible and noninclusive, raising significant safety concerns within equine-assisted services (EASs). This study examines the experiences of EAS providers (N = 201) in fitting helmets for clients, many of whom have diverse access needs. A secondary analysis of deidentified survey responses was conducted. Findings demonstrate systemic barriers related to helmet sizing, fit, and compatibility with hairstyles and assistive technologies, such as cochlear implants. These challenges underscore the need for an inclusive helmet design that addresses bodily diversity. Drawing on the Adaptive Synergy framework, adaptive technologies from other sports may offer timely and novel pathways for decreasing barriers and increasing accessibility. Furthermore, companies are encouraged to include those lacking access to the industry in the conversation to gain user involvement, which may increase innovation, accessibility, and end-user engagement. Through the intersection of design, access, and autonomy, this research contributes to broader debates about how exclusionary practices in safety equipment perpetuate marginalization and stigmatization of disabled persons within sport and therapeutic recreation.
Evidence weight
Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40
| F · citation impact | 0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20 |
| M · momentum | 0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07 |
| V · venue signal | 0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03 |
| R · text relevance † | 0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20 |
† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.