Online Dictionaries and Accessibility for People with Visual Impairments

3Citations
Citations of this article
12Readers
Mendeley users who have this article in their library.

This article is free to access.

Abstract

Making information about language accessible to users has long been a key concern of lexicographic research. Adopting a narrower perspective, this examination of three dictionary websites (collinsdictionary.com, merriam-webster.com, and dle.rae.es) employs the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) to examine their accessibility for people with visual impairments. Dictionaries can be motors for social inclusion of this oft-marginalised group since, beyond resolving language doubts, they can also help affirm socio-cultural identities. Unlike paper dictionaries where space-saving conventions make accessibility a challenge, in principle, online resources are adaptable to the needs of users with visual impairments. In practice, although none of the websites evaluated meet any officially recognised WCAG conformance level, they do contain features aimed at improving accessibility for this group. Most impediments to accessibility are the result of ancillary elements such as advertising, social media, games, and word of the day features. Although these ancillary elements may not necessarily be the principal focus of dictionary use, they nonetheless have a negative effect on the accessibility of the dictionary entry itself. This article concludes with suggestions for solving several of these accessibility issues.

References Powered by Scopus

The state of the art in automating usability evaluation of user interfaces

604Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Guidelines are only half of the story: Accessibility problems encountered by blind users on the Web

252Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Marketing in Hypermedia Computer-Mediated Environments: Conceptual Foundations

195Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Cited by Powered by Scopus

The Effectiveness of OpenAI GPT-Generated Definitions Versus Definitions from an English Learners’ Dictionary in a Lexically Orientated Reading Task

11Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Dictionaries and lexicography in the AI era

5Citations
N/AReaders
Get full text

Register to see more suggestions

Mendeley helps you to discover research relevant for your work.

Already have an account?

Cite

CITATION STYLE

APA

Rees, G. P. (2023). Online Dictionaries and Accessibility for People with Visual Impairments. International Journal of Lexicography, 36(2), 107–132. https://doi.org/10.1093/ijl/ecac021

Readers over time

‘23‘240481216

Readers' Seniority

Tooltip

PhD / Post grad / Masters / Doc 1

50%

Researcher 1

50%

Readers' Discipline

Tooltip

Social Sciences 1

33%

Computer Science 1

33%

Engineering 1

33%

Save time finding and organizing research with Mendeley

Sign up for free
0