Designing accessible ICT products and services

Computer Standards & Interfaces

Ghinea

2015

Self Cite

Among the key design practices which contribute to the development of inclusive ICT products and services is user testing with people with disabilities. Traditionally, this involves partial or minimal user testing through the use of standard heuristics, employing external assisting devices, and the direct feedback of impaired users. However, efficiency could be improved if designers could readily analyse the needs of their target audience as part of a highly iterative design process. The VERITAS framework simulates and systematically analyses how users with various impairments interact with the use of ICT products and services. Thus, facilitating an efficient approach to design and testing. This article reports qualitative insights into the use of the framework by 72 evaluators drawn from five application domains: infotainment-games; workplace design; smart living spaces; healthcare; and automotives. The findings show that the VERITAS framework is useful to designers, offering an intuitive approach to inclusive design. However, several key areas present challenges to designers; notably, their lack of technical knowledge made the interface difficult to comprehend and their lack of familiarity with virtual user modeling or simulation software made the workflow difficult to follow. Furthermore, designers had a number of expectations in terms of features and feedback which were not fulfilled. This article reviews these concerns and presents recommendations which will inform the design of future inclusive design tools.

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Designing for designers: Towards the development of accessible ICT products and services using the VERITAS framework

Scott

Computer Standards & Interfaces

Ghinea

2015

Self Cite

“…A range of inclusive design practices have been used by practitioners to help designers evaluate designs for their conformity to accessibility standards, as well as their accessibility to people living with a disability. Specifically, a platform was proposed for automatically assessing a design for its accessibility across five application areas -automotive, smart living spaces, workplace design, infotainment, and personal healthcare and wellbeing with positive results (Scott et al, 2015;Spyridonis et al, 2014). Similarly, Hersh (2017) presented an evaluation framework with an aim to assess ICT-based learning technologies for people living with a disability.…”

Section: Web Accessibility Evaluation Toolsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A serious game to improve engagement with web accessibility guidelines

Behaviour & Information Technology

Daylamani-Zad

2020

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Designers are often faced with the challenge of following web accessibility guidelines that are complex and ambiguous, and therefore hard to use. This is evidenced by the low percentage of public websites that comply fully with web accessibility standards worldwide. Lack of engagement among designers to follow established web accessibility guidelines is often accounted for this issue. In this paper, we address designers' lack of engagement through a serious game called GATE which is based on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). We followed a User-Centred approach by identifying user types of designers through an online survey. We then mapped these user types and the WCAG to relevant game mechanics. The resulting game was evaluated with designers for its perceived effectiveness, user engagement, and user satisfaction using a mixed methods approach. Our results demonstrate the potential of GATE which offers designers an innovative and engaging solution towards the wider adoption of web accessibility guidelines.

Designing Accessible Games with the VERITAS Framework: Lessons Learned from Game Designers

Scott

Lecture Notes in Computer Science

Ghinea

2015

Self Cite

Abstract.Testing is important to improve accessibility. However, within the serious games area, this can sometimes rely on minimal testing with the use of heuristics and external assistive devices, with limited input from impaired users. Efficiency would be improved if designers could readily evaluate their designs with the assistance of virtual users. The VERITAS framework simulates and presents data on the impact of a virtual user's impairments; thus, facilitating a more efficient approach to inclusive design. This article reports insights into the use of the framework by 31 evaluators from the serious games field. A log-file analysis highlights key areas of concern, which are then further explored through a questionnaire. The findings suggest that the background knowledge of designers should be considered in order to improve acceptance and usability. Specifically, by addressing challenges comprehending interface elements, following the simulation workflow, and reacting to feedback.