Comunicação apresentada na conferência Dare to Desire: 6th International Design & Emotion Conference, Hong Kong, 2008.It is an unmistakable fact that objects hold an important role in the construction of identity, acting as markers of a certain lifestyle. In this process of symbolic construction, to own a certain object
entails more often than not a high social status. However, some objects can also carry with them stigma: owning them brings about a discrediting effect in the construction of the owner`s identity. For people with disabilities the use of objects employed for mitigate their impairment (as a wheelchair or a walking aid) often act as a symbol of stigma and empathize the prejudices to the
people who use them
