Literature Reviews
Reviewed research papers, articles, and publications relevant to digital accessibility.
17 results found tagged design methodology.
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Adoption and Configuration of Assistive Technologies: A Semiotic Engineering Perspective
This paper from the University of Washington proposes applying semiotic engineering — an HCI design methodology rooted in semiotics (the study of signs, symbols, and their meanings) — to address the high abandonment rate of assistive technologies. St…
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Designing for Dynamic Diversity: Interfaces for Older People
This paper argues that mainstream interface design fails older people by assuming a static, "typical" user who is young, fit, and male. The authors identify three broad groups of older computer users: fit older people who do not consider themselves d…
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Basic Senior Personas: A Representative Design Tool Covering the Spectrum of European Older Adults
This paper introduces a set of 30 "basic senior personas" representing European citizens aged 60 and older, developed using a quantitative approach based on micro-level data from approximately 12,500 individuals across 17 European countries from the …
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Accessible Computing -- Past Trends and Future Suggestions: Commentary on "Computers and People with Disabilities"
This influential commentary by Alan Newell reflects on 15 years of progress since Glinert and York's seminal 1992 paper on computers and disability. While acknowledging advances—specialized journals, accessibility features in mainstream software, AAC…
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Ability-Based Design: Concept, Principles and Examples
This foundational paper introduces ability-based design as a paradigm shift in accessible computing—moving focus from what users cannot do (disability) to what they can do (ability). The authors argue that traditional approaches like assistive techno…
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Self-Conscious or Self-Confident? A Diary Study Conceptualizing the Social Accessibility of Assistive Technology
This landmark study introduces the concept of "social accessibility" as a complement to functional accessibility in assistive technology design. The authors argue that ATs have traditionally been defined purely in functional terms—the Technical Assis…
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Implementing Ability-Based Design: A Systematic Approach to Conceptual User Modeling
This paper addresses a critical gap in Ability-Based Design (ABD): while the concept has been influential in accessibility research for over a decade, it has lacked a systematic methodology for implementation. ABD, introduced by Wobbrock et al., shif…
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Imagining Artificial Intelligence Applications with People with Visual Disabilities using Tactile Ideation
This paper presents a novel tactile ideation methodology for working with people with visual disabilities to imagine future AI applications, and reports on cross-cultural workshops conducted in the UK (6 participants) and India (8 participants). Rath…
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Using Participatory Design with Proxies with Children with Limited Communication
This paper explores the use of Participatory Design with Proxies (PDwP) as a methodology for including children with severe communication limitations in the design of digital technologies. PDwP is a variation of participatory design where people fami…
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Incorporating Social Factors in Accessible Design
This paper investigates how professional designers can incorporate social factors into accessible design using Design for Social Accessibility (DSA), a framework developed in prior work by Shinohara and Wobbrock. The core premise is that accessible d…