Rosenverse

This video is only accessible to Gold members. Log in or register for a free Gold Trial Account to watch.

Log in Register

Most conference talks are accessible to Gold members, while community videos are generally available to all logged-in members.

Prototype Reviews, People With Disabilities, and You

Gold
Friday, October 1, 2021 • DesignOps Summit 2021
Share the love for this talk
Prototype Reviews, People With Disabilities, and You
Speakers: Sam Proulx
Link:

Summary

In this interactive session, Sam Proulx, accessibility evangelist at Fable, will draw from experience as a person with a disability, and from Fable’s thousands of hours of research experience, to answer all of your questions about conducting prototype reviews with people with disabilities. What design systems work best? What disabilities can participate in prototype reviews out of the box, and what types of disabilities might need special adaptations? What information should a prototype contain, to get the best feedback and engagement from people with disabilities? How can you and your organization learn to better shift left, and involve people with disabilities as early as possible in the design process, and why should you? We’ll also have plenty of time for your own questions! If you’ve been wanting to conduct prototype reviews that involve people with disabilities, but weren’t quite sure where to begin, don’t miss this session!

Key Insights

  • Starting prototype reviews with screen magnification users offers high impact with minimal adaptation.

  • Screen magnification users benefit from graphical prototypes because they can magnify visuals and assess color contrast and text size directly.

  • Users with physical challenges may need researchers to operate prototypes on their behalf due to assistive tech limitations, especially with hover and click targets.

  • Screen reader users require prototypes with semantic markup like proper heading levels, labeled controls, and landmarks, which traditional wireframes usually lack.

  • Prototyping tools like Figma and Adobe currently have limited accessibility support for screen reader users but are actively researching improvements.

  • Building prototypes for screen reader users often involves using document-based tools like Microsoft Word or Google Docs to show semantic structure and text equivalents.

  • Hover interactions pose significant challenges for users relying on alternative navigation methods such as switch systems or head mice.

  • Control labeling consistency in prototypes is crucial to avoid confusion, particularly for those using voice dictation or alternative input.

  • Low vision users who do not fully rely on screen readers are the largest group benefiting from improved prototype accessibility.

  • Mobile accessibility considerations largely mirror desktop concerns, with screen size and gesture differences being the main changes.

Notable Quotes

"Including people with disabilities in prototype reviews can be different based on the assistive technology they use and their needs."

"Screen magnification is really about making the screen larger, changing color contrast, reducing motion, and panning around the magnified area."

"Screen magnification users are a great place to start because your prototypes and tools will mostly just work with minimal adaptation."

"Users with physical challenges often can see and interpret prototypes but may need help clicking through them because assistive tech may not support the prototype system."

"Screen reader users need semantic structure that graphical prototypes typically don’t have, like labeled headings, controls, tables, and landmarks."

"For screen reader users, you often need to build entirely new prototypes using systems like Microsoft Word or Google Docs to convey semantic information."

"Hover is very difficult for users who use switch systems or head mice because they can only click or not click and have trouble holding steady to hover."

"Consistency between control labels and prototype instructions matters a lot, because mismatches can cause big problems for alternative navigation."

"Most of the work on accessible prototyping for screen readers is still in early or mid research stages but is improving rapidly."

"Involving people with disabilities throughout the product development cycle is crucial, from prototype reviews through to acceptance testing."

Ask the Rosenbot
Sarah Alvarado
How to make UX research leadership more effective [Advancing Research Community Workshop Series]
2023 • Advancing Research Community
Dalia El-Shimy
So You've Got a Seat at the Table. Now What?
2020 • Advancing Research 2020
Gold
Kavana Ramesh
Meaningful inclusion: Practicing accessibility research with confidence
2024 • DesignOps Summit 2024
Gold
Scott Stephens
The Next Generation in DesignOps Toolsets
2022 • DesignOps Community
Sam Ladner
Data Exhaust and Personal Data: Learning from Consumer Products to Enhance Enterprise UX
2016 • Enterprise UX 2016
Gold
Brianna Sylver
Lead With Purpose
2020 • Advancing Research 2020
Gold
Christian Madsbjerg
Influencing Strategy
2020 • Advancing Research 2020
Gold
Product and Design at Bloomberg: A 15-year Evolution
2022 • Design in Product 2022
Gold
Jemma Ahmed
Theme 2 Intro
2024 • Advancing Research 2024
Gold
Rachel Posman
"Ask Me Anything" with Rachel Posman and John Calhoun, Authors of the Upcoming Rosenfeld Book, The Design Conductors
2024 • DesignOps Summit 2024
Gold
Boon Yew Chew
Making Sense of Systems—and Using Systems to Make Sense of the Enterprise
2023 • Enterprise UX 2023
Gold
Jemma Ahmed
Research at an inflection point: Adapting to a new era of collaboration, equity, and innovation
2025 • Advancing Research 2025
Gold
Bria Alexander
Opening Remarks Day 2
2024 • Advancing Research 2024
Gold
Louis Rosenfeld
Day 1 Welcome
2024 • DesignOps Summit 2024
Gold
Landon Barnes
Are My Research Findings Actually Meaningful?
2022 • Advancing Research 2022
Gold
Taiye Akin-Akinyosoye
Amplifying voices and enhancing user research through group interviews
2025 • Advancing Research 2025
Gold

More Videos

Joanna Vodopivec

"Building strong relationships with marketing requires mutual respect and regularly following up on their insights."

Joanna Vodopivec Prabhas Pokharel

One Research Team for All - Influence Without Authority

March 9, 2022

Louis Rosenfeld

"I didn’t understand just how complex everything was both on the stakeholder and technology side."

Louis Rosenfeld Lashanda Hodge Senongo Akpem Chris Hodowanec

Becoming a Civic Designer: Making the Move from Private to Public Sector

November 17, 2022

Bria Alexander

"We are closing out design ops 2024 with innovation curated by the incomparable John Kuda."

Bria Alexander

Day 3 Welcome

September 25, 2024

Uday Gajendar

"Hopefully the internet stays strong and holds steady despite the stormy weather here in Louisiana."

Uday Gajendar Louis Rosenfeld

Day 2 Welcome

June 5, 2024

Sam Proulx

"Timely interactions that log users out without saving progress cause abandonment, especially for people with disabilities."

Sam Proulx

Online Shopping: Designing an Accessible Experience

June 7, 2023

Russ Unger

"Waiting and vague communication during hiring is a painful guessing game for candidates."

Russ Unger

Onboarding: The Ecosystem, not the Afterthought

November 7, 2017

Catherine Dubut

"The store mobile device is the indispensable silent partner enabling store employees to balance task productivity and customer engagement."

Catherine Dubut

Bridging Physical and Digital Spaces: Approaches to Retail Service Design

March 18, 2021

Josh Clark

"Traditional software is grounded—accurate and reliable—but lacks radical adaptivity."

Josh Clark Veronika Kindred

Sentient Design: New Postures for AI-Mediated Experiences (2nd of 3 seminars)

January 29, 2025

Dantley Davis

"Every manager who works with me knows their responsibility includes sourcing candidates for diverse backgrounds."

Dantley Davis

Leadership & Diversity—A Fireside Chat with Dantley Davis

September 17, 2020