Creating usable websites for people with learning disabilities
-
Upload
rosselladh -
Category
Documents
-
view
898 -
download
1
description
Transcript of Creating usable websites for people with learning disabilities
Exploring methods to test usability of web interfaces for people with learning
disabilities
Peter WilliamsWith thanks to Andy Minnion and Ian Rowlands
Painless Introduction to DHUCL 2 March 2011
Plan of talk★Background, context, aims etc.
★Study Part One: Eliciting the (usability) issues
★ Methods; individual studies; findings
★Study Part Two: Comparing websites
★ Introducing ‘trade-off’ analysis
Background and context
“a state of arrested or incomplete development of mind”Intellectual impairmentSocial or adaptive dysfunctionEarly onset (WHO, 2006)
Classified into ‘Mild’, ‘Moderate’, ‘Profound (and multiple)’
Introduction: definition of LD
Background
‘The Road Ahead: Information for young people with learning difficulties, their families and supporters at transition’
Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE)
Problem statementLack of appropriate information (Tarleton, 2004)
Much is inaccessible (Tarleton, 2004)
Even ‘accessible’ information hard to access (Davis et al, 2001; Minnion et al, 2008)
ICT lauded as possible answer (Florian & Hegarty 2004)
But, little research on the most effective interfaces (Bohman, 2007)
Aims and scopeAim✦To determine which Web page interface factors facilitate success in information retrieval by people with LD
ScopeParticipantsTechnology/platform Focus (IR)
Stages/steps
Stages/stepsPART ONEExplore contextual factors Develop usability set-tasks Elicit the factors affecting information retrievalTest methods of capturing user preferences (I’ll tell you about that later!)
PART TWOConstruct various different ‘accessible’ websites Compare - performance and preferenceDetermine the optimum websites for different user groups
;
Part One: Eliciting the issues
The projects ....
Text
Project @pple
Newham Easyread
Factors affecting use of ICT: contextual
Massive enthusiasm
BUT Competing agendas Time constraints Lack of learning materials Lack of training / support
Issue elicited
Understanding of tasks
Resolution
Single actions only
Idiosyncratic behaviour
‘Experimental’ v naturalistic behaviour
Motivation •Set context •Used meaningful material•Emphasised engagement
Factors affecting use of ICT: terminal
Individual studies Study one: Effectiveness of images (in game playing) Study two: Navigation Study three: Information retrieval Study four: Capturing preference data (I’ll tell you later!)
Methods: ObservationThink aloud protocol (where possible)Informal interview
Study one: Understanding images
Had moderate LD: •Fair/good receptive language•Poor or no literacy
Aims: examine understanding of images test appropriateness and ease of use of
various games.
Participants:
Study one: Understanding images (Task 1)
Study one: Understanding images (Task 2)
Study two: NavigationAims:To determine Whether websites can be navigated effectively by
people with very low literacy skills If usability tests can be effective with such a
community
Participants: Again, had ‘moderate’ LD
Study two: NavigationProcedure: Hunt the treasure!
• (‘Find the man in the black hat...• click!…’• ‘Now find the box of treasure’• ‘write down the letter on the
box…’)
Study two: NavigationResults - Usability difficulties: Iconography Page-scrolling Horizontal v vertical menu
Results - Methodological issues: Role of the supporter
Study three: Information retrieval (IR)
Aims: To examine navigation, scrolling and IR. to elicit any methodological issues
Paricipants: Mild LD
Study three: Information retrieval (IR)
Tasks: Where will you find information about money? (scroll) How to you get the sound to play? (icon recognition) Can you go back to the previous page? (navigation)
Results Audio / text issue Text size v scrolling Menu bar position
From the results we can ask ... for example: ✦ What is more important - large text or minimising
scrolling? Do images help?
Study three: Information retrieval (IR)
Part two: compare and contrast …
Part two: comparing and optimising web interfaces
Pete’s lonesome trade-off
analysis
Part two: comparing and optimising web interfaces
Method (1):First, imagine 3 mobile phones … Which do you prefer?
Then whiz the results through a Conjoint Analysis
Method (2):Now imagine various web page designs: Absence or presence of images Menu position Text size
And in addition to preferences, performance
Part two: comparing and optimising web interfaces
Part two: comparing and optimising web interfaces
Example (Horizontal menu; with images; large text)
Part two: comparing and optimising web interfaces
Measures:✦ Time on task✦ Task success✦ Preference evaluations
Part two: comparing and optimising web interfaces
By the end of my study …… I should be able to reveal the optimum website
interface!!
Thanks for listening!
ReferencesMerson E, Hatton, C (2008) Estimating Future Need for Adult Social Care for People with Learning
Disabilities in England Project report, Centre for Disability Reserach, Lancaster University, Lancaster.
Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities (2007) Statistics about people with learning disabilities Available online at: http://www.learningdisabilities.org.uk/information/learning-disabilities-statistics/
Disability Rights Commission (2006) Equal Treatment: Closing the Gap London: Disability Rights Commission
Tarleton, B. (2004), The Road Ahead? Information for Young People with Learning Difficulties, Their Families and Supporters at Transition, Norah Fry Research Centre, University of Bristol, Bristol.
WHO (World Health Organisation) (2006)A Need Assessment of Health and Welfare among the Disabled for Community Based Rehabilitation in Jeju Available online at: http://www.wpro.who.int/internet/resources.ashx/HSE/occupational_health/jeju_CBR_2006_rep.pdf