Technical communication between experts and non-experts as a barrier

This article explores the reduction of barriers in the context of specialised communication, in particular in technical communication. The pronounced heterogeneity of the target group (see Section 2) makes the reflection on these barriers, or rather on accessibility in the context of technical communication, particularly difficult. While research on accessible communication usually focuses on target groups with specific communicative impairments, the framework can be somewhat expanded here: In communication between experts and non-experts (laypersons), technical communication per se already constitutes a communication barrier, which is even greater for target groups with special needs. This article deals with the barriers that all non-expert target groups of technical communication face – regardless of specific communicative impairments.