This content originally appeared on NN/g latest articles and announcements and was authored by Tanner Kohler
Summary: Using a screen reader on a mobile device is challenging because users must access information sequentially and they cannot easily scan page content. Screen-reader users do not consider accessibility menus helpful.
Accessibility is a topic that makes some people feel excited and others feel anxious. Those who feel excited and passionate about accessibility tend to be individuals with exposure to users with disabilities. While this exposure does not take away the challenge of making things accessible, it can foster a strong sense of empathy for these users and an urgency to make things better. Getting buy-in for accessibility and integrating accessibility efforts into your existing processes can reduce anxiety around this topic. This article intends to help our audience understand how users who are blind and partially blind experience websites and apps on a mobile device when they are using a screen reader.
While great strides have been made in the last decade to improve the accessibility of websites and apps on mobile devices, there is much yet to be done. In one research session, we invited a participant who was fully blind and extremely skilled at using a screen reader, to choose an app he loved because it was easy to use. His response was instructive and set the theme for the entire study: “That’s a hard statement because I don’t love any app .” He explained that there are apps he finds useful , but all apps are challenging to use with a screen reader and take a long time to figure out. Each design presents a whole new set of challenges for screen-reader users. Even apps from enormous companies such as Apple, Walmart, Target, and Amazon — which have entire teams dedicated to accessibility — presented challenges for some of our most-experienced participants.
Methodology
We conducted a series of in-person research sessions with participants who relied on screen readers to use mobile devices because they were blind and partially blind. The participants used their screen readers to complete all the activities and tasks throughout the sessions. We employed a mix of usability testing , contextual inquiry , and user interviews . The sessions were conducted in participants’ homes or personal offices. We extend our gratitude to each individual who participated in this research and allowed us to visit them.
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This content originally appeared on NN/g latest articles and announcements and was authored by Tanner Kohler
Tanner Kohler | Sciencx (2023-04-30T16:00:00+00:00) Challenges for Screen-Reader Users on Mobile. Retrieved from https://www.scien.cx/2023/04/30/challenges-for-screen-reader-users-on-mobile/
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