Introduction
Welcome to this blog series exploring the world of Accessibility and Digital Inclusion, told from the perspective of someone still learning.
Rather than starting with “The Basics of Accessibility,” I have chosen a different approach for this first post. There are already many insightful articles written by experts that cover foundational concepts in depth. Instead, I’ll be sharing my personal experiences as I uncover new aspects of Accessibility and Digital Inclusion in real time.
Think of this blog as opening a book halfway through. Each post will reflect what I’m currently learning, the challenges the team and I are facing, and the insights I’m gaining along the way.
Each article in this series will follow a consistent format:
- What I’ve been learning
- Why it matters
- Quick tips, challenges, and further learning suggestions—to help support your own journey.
This week’s focus: Impairment + Environment = Disability
This week I was reminded of the “Social model of disability”. This is the idea that someone who is impaired or different can function perfectly well, so long as their environment (which can be physical or digital) has been designed in an inclusive way.
To put it bluntly, as designers, developers and content creators, we disable people when we get it wrong.
So, what does “right” look like?
I read a really helpful blog this week whose author was writing from the perspective of neurodivergent information processing. I encourage you to read the original (linked below) but here is my interpretation of what they are saying:
Processing information happens in 3 stages:
- Receiving
- Processing
- Actioning
Receiving
In the first stage, a person needs to be able to perceive the information – “get it out of the environment and into your brain”. In the world of UX design we know that different people do this in different ways. Not everyone can see or hear, so to ensure everyone can perceive the information it must be available in both visual and audible formats. Additionally it needs the ability to be translated to the person’s preferred language, and be able to be adjusted to their visual needs in terms of size, colour and format.
Processing
In the second stage a person needs to be able to make sense of what they’re receiving – “Once the information is inside your brain, you then need to process it and reach an understanding.”
I disagree slightly with the author that “affordance” is part of the first stage, I would argue it is part of the second because it has to do with cues and automatic comprehension. If you want to understand more about affordance and heuristics as concepts I recommend looking up “Norman doors”, a fascinating rabbit hole to fall down!
The key things to think about in this stage are;
- Does the information assume any prior knowledge, however basic, to be understood
- Does the information make possible actions easy to comprehend
- Can the information be filtered to reduce the amount of processing needed
- Are actions clearly presented, as well as possible outcomes and consequences, and the ability to undo something if you make a mistake
- Does the information make any planning tasks clear, such as how much time it might take, where it can be done (in person or online), what information they might need to provide, and whether they will be allowed to save their progress along the way.
Something we need to think about in Local Government more than a lot of other websites is how much stress our viewer might be under. The more stressed or vulnerable the person is, the less processing they will be able to do, and so the simpler the content and actions need to be.
Actioning
Finally, with the information received and processed, the person might need to take an action. This in and of itself needs to meet all the same criteria as the first two stages.
Why it matters
Understanding the social model of disability gives us a framework for analysing and thinking about the decisions we can make to build the most inclusive websites and digital tools.
As I was reflecting on these ideas about information processing I felt able to see where the key tenants of the WCAG rules evolved from. To me these concepts underline the importance of understanding people as well as learning all the technical rules. Empathy in UX design is everything!
Quick tip
Start thinking about Accessibility and Digital Inclusion as a mindset, not a checklist. Ask yourself the question “could I use this if [add impairment here]”. It’s a simple question that can lead to more inclusive designs.
Try this
Take a moment to think about adjustments you make for yourself to help you receive and process information. Perhaps you use closed captions when you want to watch video content in a public or noisy environment for example. Are there any websites that prevent you from being able to make those adjustments? That’s what inaccessible design feels like!