Communication between Visually Impaired and Sighted People in Blind Soccer

Abstract

In recent years, hands-on programs based on Blind soccer, which is played by people with visual impairments, have attracted attention in schools and companies. Several programs conducted by the Japan Blind Soccer Association have demonstrated the potential to greatly improve the communication skills of sighted participants.

Blind soccer differs from other games for the visually impaired in that it allows players to move freely around the field, but the core of the game is communication between the visually impaired and the sighted, based on vocal information from guides and coaches who provide distance and angle information behind opponents’ goals.

Based on the reactions of the participants, it can be inferred that Blind soccer, which is the basis of the experiential program, has the ability to foster deep communication that leads to a common understanding with others. Therefore, this study investigated the characteristics of communication between blind and sighted people in Blind soccer.

Based on the interviews, Blind soccer players consider vocal communication with their guides and other sighted people as the basis of the game, and play with a sense of freedom on the field based on this communication. The relationship is not a one-way one where the able-bodied people help the disabled player, but a communication of equals that transcends the supportive relationship, ultimately uniting for the common goal of winning the game.