Literature Reviews

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

• What difference does tech make? Conceptualizations of Disability and Assistive Technology among Kenyan Youth

  Giulia Barbareschi, Norah Shitawa Kopi, Ben Oldfrey, Catherine Holloway (2021) — Proceedings of the 23rd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '21)

  This paper examines how young Kenyans without disabilities conceptualize both disability and assistive technology (AT), addressing a significant gap in accessibility research that has predominantly focused on Global North perspectives. While over 80%…

  • disability stigma
  • assistive technology
  • Global South
  • Kenya
  • youth attitudes
  • disability perception
  • qualitative research
  • social model of disability

• Scaffolding Digital Literacy Through Digital Skills Training for Disabled People in the Global South

  Laxmi Gunupudi, Maryam Bandukda, Giulia Barbareschi, Tigmanshu Bhatnagar, Aanchal Singh, Satish Mishra, Amit Prakash, Catherine Holloway (2024) — ASSETS 2024: 26th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility

  This paper presents a digital skills training intervention for 138 blind and partially sighted (BPS) and deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) people across India and Kenya, grounded in Vygotsky's Scaffolding Theory. The study addresses the digital divide f…

  • digital literacy
  • digital skills
  • scaffolding
  • visual impairment
  • hearing impairment
  • Global South
  • LMIC
  • smartphone accessibility
  • peer learning
  • India
  • Kenya

• Toward a Multi-layer Framework to Assess the Quality of Life Impact of Smartphones as Assistive Technology for People with Sensory Disabilities in Kenya

  Maryam Bandukda, Lan Xiao, Giulia Barbareschi, Philip Oyier, Henry Athiany, Raul Szekely, Wallace M Karuguti, Mwangi J Matheri MJM, Victoria Austin, Catherine Holloway (2025) — ASSETS 2025: 27th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility

  This paper presents the first longitudinal mixed-methods study investigating the impact of smartphones as assistive technology on the quality of life (QoL) of blind or partially sighted (BPS) and deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) individuals in Kenya. Th…

  • smartphones
  • assistive technology
  • Global South
  • Kenya
  • blindness and visual impairment
  • deaf and hard of hearing
  • quality of life
  • digital inclusion
  • mobile accessibility
  • longitudinal study