Web User Interface Adaptation for Low Vision People: An Exploratory Study Based on a Grounded Theory Review Method

Abstract

People with visual impairments (PVI) are characterized as a diverse population of users due to multiple vision impairments like visual acuity, light and glare sensitivity, contrast sensitivity, limited field of vision, color blindness. In that context, adaptation is a key element for coping with diversity in the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). This study explores the adaptation to provide accessible web user interfaces for low vision people. To do so, we relied on Grounded Theory (GT) as a review method to cover academics and mainstream web perspectives. In the spirit of all is data, we collected a set of scientific publications, initiatives led by leading actors in Information and Communication Technology, and PVI organizations over the past ten years. Our findings show that academics followed particularist, user-centered, and proactive principles, but rarely included PVI in the early project stage. While most solutions are based on adaptivity, adaptation is still under investigation. Regarding the mainstream web perspective, recent initiatives followed universality, multi-stakeholder involvement, and proactivity principles. In opposition to the academic perspective, accessibility has been exclusively based on adaptability and tailored user interfaces. As the adaptability features become more and more advanced, the frontier between specialized assistive technology will be blurred. Hence, we recommend investigating environments of adaptation stacking with a better alignment between academics and industry.