Literature Reviews

Reviewed research papers, articles, and publications relevant to digital accessibility.

• Embroidered Braille: Towards Accessible and Inclusive Educational Tools and Everyday Applications

  Pouya M Khorsandi, Sara Nabil (2026) — CHI EA '26: Extended Abstracts of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

  This short CHI Extended Abstracts paper by Khorsandi and Nabil (Queen's University iStudio) stakes out digitally embroidered Braille as a design space for DIY making of accessible everyday artefacts, rather than as another institutional assistive-tec…

  • braille
  • digital embroidery
  • tactile graphics
  • blind and low vision
  • DIY
  • hybrid craft
  • e-textiles
  • maker culture
  • self-expression
  • STEM education

• TacChat: Exploring User Generation and Accessible Sharing via Tactile Graphics for the Blind and Visually Impaired

  Yuewen Zhang, Danning Li, Kexin Zhou, Pu Jiang, Jingyang Lyu, Kotaro Hara, Baoshui Chen, Shuai Gao, Yang Jiao (2026) — Extended Abstracts of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI EA '26)

  Zhang and colleagues (Tsinghua University, Singapore Management University, and Beijing School for the Blind) flip the usual framing of tactile-graphics research: rather than asking how blind and low-vision (BLV) people can better consume tactile ima…

  • tactile graphics
  • refreshable tactile display
  • blind and low vision
  • accessible authoring
  • social media accessibility
  • technology probe
  • accessibility research
  • self-expression
  • non-visual interaction

• Autistic Adults' Perspectives on Self-Expression and Dyadic vs. Group Interactions in AR Telepresence

  Mahrukh Tauseef, Alexandra Watkins, Zalen Ingram, Rendong Zhang, Akshith Ullal, Ritam Ghosh, Amy Sue Weitlauf, Zachary Warren, Nilanjan Sarkar (2026) — Proceedings of the 2026 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI '26)

  This CHI 2026 paper investigates how autistic adults experience augmented reality (AR) telepresence as a medium for social interaction, a population whose needs are largely absent from existing avatar and social VR/AR research. Motivated by the high …

  • autism
  • augmented reality
  • avatars
  • social presence
  • telepresence
  • participatory design
  • self-expression
  • neurodiversity
  • sensory sensitivity
  • co-design

• Comic Spin: A Comic Creation Tool Enabling Self-expression for People with Aphasia

  Carla Tamburro, Timothy Neate, Abi Roper, Stephanie Wilson (2022) — ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  Comic Spin is a tablet application (iOS and Android) designed to enable people with aphasia to create comic strips through a constrained creativity approach. Aphasia, typically caused by stroke, affects language abilities including reading, writing, …

  • aphasia
  • creativity support tools
  • constrained creativity
  • self-expression
  • stroke
  • language impairment
  • accessible design
  • mobile application

• "Wear It Loud": How and Why Hearing Aid and Cochlear Implant Users Customize Their Devices

  Halley P. Profita, Abigale Stangl, Laura Matuszewska, Sigrunn Sky, Raja Kushalnagar, Shaun K. Kane (2018) — ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing (TACCESS)

  This paper investigates why and how hearing aid and cochlear implant users aesthetically customize their devices, exploring the intersection of assistive technology, identity, and social acceptability. The research addresses a significant problem: he…

  • hearing aids
  • cochlear implants
  • deafness
  • DIY assistive technology
  • social acceptability
  • stigma
  • self-expression
  • online communities
  • identity

• Nothing to Hide: Aesthetic Customization of Hearing Aids and Cochlear Implants in an Online Community

  Halley P. Profita, Abigale Stangl, Laura Matuszewska, Sigrunn Sky, Shaun K. Kane (2016) — Proceedings of the 18th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '16)

  This paper analyzes aesthetic customization practices within a Facebook community of over 4,800 members dedicated to decorating and personalizing hearing aids (HAs) and cochlear implants (CIs). Approximately 48 million people in the United States (20…

  • hearing aid
  • cochlear implant
  • DIY assistive technology
  • social accessibility
  • disability identity
  • online communities
  • self-expression
  • deaf and hard of hearing
  • disability culture

• Digital Strategies for Supporting Strengths- and Interests-based Learning with Children with Autism

  Cara Wilson, Margot Brereton, Bernd Ploderer, Laurianne Sitbon, Beth Saggers (2017) — Proceedings of the 19th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper investigates how an open-ended audio-visual calendaring app called MeCalendar was appropriated by children with autism and their teachers in classroom settings, shifting the focus from deficit-remediation to strengths- and interests-based …

  • autism
  • educational technology
  • children
  • strengths-based approach
  • self-determination
  • participatory design
  • inclusive design
  • classroom technology
  • self-expression
  • neurodiversity

• Socially Connecting Adults with Intellectual Disabilities Through Inclusive Co-Design of Tangible and Visual Technology

  Manesha Andradi (2022) — Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This doctoral consortium paper presents an in-progress PhD research program exploring how tangible and visual technologies can be co-designed with adults who have intellectual disabilities to foster social connections at non-residential learning hubs…

  • intellectual disability
  • co-design
  • tangible technology
  • social connection
  • participatory design
  • communication
  • reverse inclusion
  • self-expression

• VisPhoto: Photography for People with Visual Impairments via Post-Production of Omnidirectional Camera Imaging

  Naoki Hirabayashi, Masakazu Iwamura, Zheng Cheng, Kazunori Minatani, Koichi Kise (2023) — Proceedings of the 25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper introduces VisPhoto, a novel photography system that fundamentally reimagines how people with visual impairments (PVI) take photographs. Rather than helping users aim a conventional camera at a target in real-time (the dominant approach in…

  • visual impairment
  • blindness
  • photography
  • computer vision
  • object detection
  • omnidirectional camera
  • assistive technology
  • self-expression
  • creative accessibility

• More than One Step at a Time: Designing Procedural Feedback for Non-visual Makeup Routines

  Franklin Mingzhe Li, Akihiko Oharazawa, Chloe Qingyu Zhu, Misty Fan, Daisuke Sato, Chieko Asakawa, Patrick Carrington (2025) — ASSETS 2025: 27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility

  This paper investigates how people with vision impairments navigate the complex, multi-step process of applying makeup—a domain that is deeply personal and culturally significant yet remains underexplored in assistive technology. The researchers cond…

  • blind and low vision
  • makeup accessibility
  • contextual inquiry
  • procedural feedback
  • tactile strategies
  • beauty accessibility
  • assistive technology design
  • self-expression