Literature Reviews

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

• Expressive Bodies Engaging with Embodied Disability Cultures for Collaborative Design Critiques

  Katta Spiel, Robin Angelini (2022) — Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This experience report explores how embodied approaches — using physical bodies to express critique rather than relying solely on spoken or signed language — can produce richer, more direct feedback when designing technologies with disabled communiti…

  • disability culture
  • participatory design
  • crip methodologies
  • embodied critique
  • autism
  • Deaf culture
  • sign language
  • neurodivergence
  • research methods

• State of the Art in AAC: A Systematic Review and Taxonomy

  Humphrey Curtis, Timothy Neate, Carlota Vazquez Gonzalez (2022) — Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper presents the first systematic review and taxonomy of high-tech augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices and interventions within the ACM literature. The authors analyzed 562 articles from the ACM Digital Library and SCOPUS …

  • augmentative and alternative communication
  • AAC
  • systematic review
  • taxonomy
  • complex communication needs
  • speech generating devices
  • assistive technology
  • participatory design

• Designing a Customizable Picture-Based Augmented Reality Application For Therapists and Educational Professionals Working in Autistic Contexts

  Tooba Ahsen, Christina Yu, Amanda O'Brien, Ralf W. Schlosser, Howard C. Shane, Dylan Oesch-Emmel, Eileen T. Crehan, Fahad Dogar (2022) — Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This paper presents CustomAR, a mobile augmented reality application designed to allow therapists and educational professionals to create and customize picture-based AR experiences for use in autism-related learning activities. The work addresses a c…

  • augmented reality
  • autism
  • visual supports
  • customization
  • therapy
  • education
  • participatory design
  • AAC

• A Workshop on Disability Inclusive Remote Co-Design

  Maryam Bandukda, Giulia Barbareschi, Aneesha Singh, Dhruv Jain, Maitraye Das, Tamanna Motahar, Jason Wiese, Lynn Cockburn, Amit Prakash, David Frohlich, Catherine Holloway (2022) — Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 22)

  This workshop paper addresses how the COVID-19 pandemic forced accessibility researchers to adapt co-design methods from in-person to remote formats, and the unique challenges this created for research involving disabled and aging participants. While…

  • co-design
  • remote research
  • participatory design
  • disability inclusion
  • COVID-19
  • accessible platforms
  • research methods
  • Global South accessibility

• Multidisciplinary Perspectives on Designing Accessible Systems for Users with Multiple Impairments: Grand Challenges and Opportunities for Future Research

  Arthur Theil, Chris Creed, Mohammed Shaqura, Nasrine Olson, Raymond John Holt, Sayan Sarcar, Stuart Murray (2022) — Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 22)

  This workshop paper from ASSETS 2022 challenges a fundamental assumption in accessibility research: that designing for one impairment category at a time is sufficient. The authors argue that this single-impairment approach, while practical and widesp…

  • multiple impairments
  • assistive technology
  • disability studies
  • multidisciplinary design
  • inclusive design
  • participatory design
  • deafblindness
  • complex disabilities

• Designing with and for People with Intellectual Disabilities

  Leandro Soares Guedes, Ryan Colin Gibson, Kirsten Ellis, Laurianne Sitbon, Monica Landoni (2022) — Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This workshop paper proposes a half-day community-building event at ASSETS '22 focused on sharing expertise in designing technologies with and for people with intellectual disabilities. The authors identify that while assistive technologies can signi…

  • intellectual disability
  • co-design
  • participatory design
  • assistive technology
  • inclusive design
  • cognitive accessibility
  • research methods
  • community building

• Depending on Independence: An Autoethnographic Account of Daily Use of Assistive Technologies

  Felix Fussenegger, Katta Spiel (2022) — Proceedings of the 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '22)

  This experience report uses autoethnography to examine the daily realities of depending on assistive technologies (AT) from the first-person perspective of Felix Fussenegger, a person living with a high spinal cord injury (C6 level) resulting in comp…

  • assistive technology
  • autoethnography
  • disability studies
  • independence
  • interdependence
  • spinal cord injury
  • socio-technical dependencies
  • participatory design

• Applying Technology in a Hybrid-Fashion to Create Dementia-Inclusive Community Spaces

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

  This doctoral consortium paper presents PhD research exploring how technology can improve accessibility to community spaces and social programs for people living with dementia (PLWD) and their informal carers. The work is grounded in the growing prac…

  • dementia
  • cognitive accessibility
  • social prescribing
  • community-based design
  • hybrid spaces
  • inclusive design
  • participatory design
  • social programs
  • interdependence
  • older adults

• Sounds and (Braille) Cells: Co-Designing Music Technology with Blind and Visually Impaired Musicians

  William Payne (2022) — Proceedings of the 19th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This doctoral consortium paper outlines a three-phase dissertation addressing the accessibility barriers that blind and visually impaired (BVI) musicians face when using music creation technologies. Music software has democratized composition, produc…

  • visual impairment
  • blindness
  • music technology
  • braille music
  • co-design
  • participatory design
  • assistive technology
  • screen readers

• User Perceptions and Preferences for Online Surveys in American Sign Language: An Exploratory Study

  Rachel Boll, Shruti Mahajan, Tish Burke, Khulood Alkhudaidi, Brittany Henriques, Isabelle Cordova, Zoey Walker, Erin T. Solovey, Jeanne Reis (2023) — Proceedings of the 25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS)

  This paper presents SL-Surveys, an interactive prototype survey tool designed from the ground up for American Sign Language (ASL) rather than retrofitting text-based survey platforms with ASL video content. The research team, which included Deaf ASL-…

  • deaf and hard of hearing
  • American Sign Language
  • survey design
  • user experience
  • ASL-centric design
  • video interface
  • accessibility research methods
  • participatory design