White paper: Beyond the binary

Mijksenaar conducted different types of research all with the same goal: immersion in the topic in order to come up with a truly inclusive design. The research varies from implementing all-gender restrooms at the Mijksenaar office to usability testing with people from all over the world.

A major part of the research was conducted together with Noor de Wit (student Industrial Design at University of Twente). We’d like to thank Schiphol Airport and Stalled! for their cooperation in this research project.

This is what we did:

  • Empathy research
    The restrooms in the Mijksenaar Amsterdam office were changed to all-gender restrooms.
  • A vote on current pictograms
    Pride week in Amsterdam was a great opportunity to collect some initial user input on pictograms.
  • Getting to know the community
    Six questions were asked to get to know the transgender and non-binary community.
  • View on all-gender restrooms
    189 people were asked four questions about their experience of all-gender restrooms.
  • Usability testing at Schiphol Airport
    A preference test of different pictograms was conducted at Schiphol Airport.

For the past year Mijksenaar has been exploring this complex topic by diving into the historical context, conducting various types of research in which the LGBTQ+ community was actively involved, and testing several design concepts in an airport environment.

We embarked on this research project to help our team and our clients make informed decisions on the implementation of all-gender restrooms.
Most of all, we hope this white paper contributes to a continuously more inclusive and dignified experience for all in our society.