Language games in prosthetic design framing: a Wittgensteinian framework

ABSTRACT:

This paper argues that disagreements about what counts as an ideal prosthesis arise from tacit framings of disability. Drawing on Wittgenstein’s language games within an abductive–deductive–inductive approach, we identify four prosthetic language games: medical, social, relational, and critical. By rendering their distinct grammars explicit, the framework reframes interdisciplinary disagreement as epistemic plurality and supports boundary work, translation, and epistemic fluency, enabling more reflective and dialogical design research without collapsing plural standards of prosthetic success.