Fair Play: A Qualitative Exploration of Visitor Behavior at PlayGrand Adventures All-Abilities Playground

Abstract

People with disabilities in the United States have access to a fraction of engaging play experiences available to others due to playground design choices, minimal legal requirements, and societal acceptance of the status quo. PlayGrand Adventures, the first and largest all-abilities playground in North Texas, meets this need by providing engaging play opportunities for everyone. This qualitative case study explores and describes community engagement at PlayGrand Adventures, informed by principles of environmental reciprocity supported by Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory (1986) and Gibson’s Affordance Theory (1979). The researcher collected data on community perception and engagement via a questionnaire, semi-structured interviews, and playground observations. The study fills a gap in academic research on all-abilities playgrounds in the United States to increase awareness of the systemic underserving of people with disabilities in this country and provides a potential solution. The researcher offers initial recommendations for PlayGrand Adventures’ future development and implementation with implications for replication in other cities.