Boundary Objects

A concept from Star and Griesemer (1989) describing artifacts that are structured enough to be understood by different social worlds but flexible enough to be interpreted differently by each one, allowing cooperation across communities without forced consensus. In accessibility and disability research, items such as family stories, pictograms, IEP documents, medical summaries, or shared community posts function as boundary objects, translating knowledge between individuals, families, clinicians, educators, and the public while retaining their core meaning.