ACCESSIBILITY UX RESEARCH (MULTIPLE PROJECTS)

During my PhD in Human-Computer Interaction, I focused on designing and evaluating systems that prioritize accessibility and usability for diverse user groups. My research sought to bridge the gap between advanced technology and real-world user needs. These projects demonstrate my commitment to creating inclusive, user-centered solutions at the intersection of UX and accessible technology, illustrating how thoughtful design can transform complex systems into intuitive, user-friendly experiences that enhance everyday interactions for all.

Beyond Adaptive Sports: Challenges & Opportunities
to Improve Accessibility and Analytics

PROBLEM:
Despite significant advancements in sports analytics and technology, adaptive sports remain underserved and underrepresented. Traditional sports technologies, designed primarily for able-bodied athletes, fail to address the unique needs of para-athletes, such as accurately tracking wheelchair movement or providing accessible data for visually impaired athletes. These limitations not only hinder the performance and training of para-athletes but also perpetuate a disparity in access to the benefits that data-driven insights can offer. Adaptive sports often lack robust, customized solutions that cater to the specific requirements of different disabilities and sports, creating barriers to effective performance tracking, training, and competitive equality. This gap in accessible technology prevents para-athletes from achieving their full potential and hinders the growth and visibility of adaptive sports.

We interviewed 18 participants in different roles (athletes, coaches, and high-performance managers) across six adaptive sports. We probed them on their current practices, existing challenges, and analytical needs. We uncovered common themes prevalent across all six sports and further examined findings in three groups:
(1) blind sports
(2) wheelchair sports
(3) adaptive sports with high equipment.

Our study highlights the challenges faced by different adaptive sports and unearths opportunities for future research to improve accessibility and address specific needs for each sport.

OUTPUT: 

1. Published article at ACM ASSETS

StuDY DESIGN

To understand the unique challenges and opportunities in adaptive sports, we conducted an extensive qualitative study involving semi-structured interviews with key stakeholders across various adaptive sports. Our goal was to identify the accessibility gaps, technological needs, and potential areas for innovation in adaptive sports analytics.

PILOT

We first developed a list of around eight questions to elicit challenges and needs in adaptive sports. Each sport is governed by a different set of rules and regulations, uses different equipment, and is likely to have a mix of both overlapping and unique challenges with other adaptive sports. These questions were used as probes in our semi-structured interview process. We ran two pilot interviews with an athlete and a coach in adaptive sports. The interviewees discussed issues with accessibility, and lack of resources, confirming our speculation that adaptive sports are far behind their able-bodied counterpart in sports analytics.

STUDY StruCTURE

Participants:

• • 18 individuals including athletes, coaches, high-performance managers, and data analysts.

  • Represented six different adaptive sports: wheelchair basketball, wheelchair rugby, wheelchair tennis, para powerlifting, blind hockey, and beep baseball.

Interview Methodology:

• • Each interview lasted approximately 45 minutes and was conducted remotely via video or audio conferencing.

  • We used a semi-structured format to allow for flexibility and in-depth exploration of participant experiences and needs.

  • Thematic areas explored included:

    • Current Practices and Technology: How existing tools and methods are being used in training and competition.

    • Technological and Analytical Needs: Specific gaps in data collection and analysis, as well as desired features in future technologies.

    • Athlete Tendencies and Anecdotal Data: Understanding of typical patterns in training and performance.

    • Role of Equipment in Sports: How current equipment supports or hinders performance and accessibility.

Data Collection:

• • All interviews were recorded, transcribed, and subjected to open coding to identify key themes.

  • A collaborative coding process was employed to ensure consistency and reliability in the identification of major themes and sub-themes.

Data Analysis Methodology:

• • Conducted thematic analysis on the interview transcripts to identify recurring challenges and opportunities across different adaptive sports.

  • Subdivided findings into three main categories:

    • Blind Sports: Focused on challenges specific to visually impaired athletes, such as the need for robust equipment and accessible training aids.

    • Wheelchair-Based Sports: Examined issues like tracking performance metrics, wheelchair customization, and maintenance.

    • High-Equipment Sports: Explored sports requiring significant equipment, such as wheelchair tennis and para powerlifting, and the associated challenges in training and performance tracking.

DATA ANALYSIS and RESULTS

Our analysis revealed several critical insights into the current state of adaptive sports and the potential for technological innovation. We categorized our findings into common themes that spanned across sports and specific issues unique to certain categories.

Common Challenges Across Adaptive Sports:

1. Financial and Resource Constraints:

   • Many adaptive sports programs suffer from underfunding, limiting access to necessary equipment, training facilities, and staff support.

   • Athletes often have to self-fund travel and equipment costs, which creates barriers to participation and competition.

2. Lack of Adaptive Sports Data:

   • There is a significant deficit in data collection tools tailored to adaptive sports, preventing athletes and coaches from tracking performance metrics effectively.

   • Standard fitness trackers and sports analytics tools are often incompatible with adaptive sports, leading to inaccurate or incomplete data.

3. Over-Reliance on Video-Based Analytics:

   • Current analytics heavily rely on video recordings, which require significant manual processing and are not optimized for adaptive sports.

   • Video systems often use kinematic models based on able-bodied athletes, which do not translate effectively for adaptive sports scenarios.

Key Findings by Sport Type:

Blind Sports:

• • Equipment Challenges: Adaptive pucks in blind hockey are not durable, often breaking after only a few games, which hinders gameplay and safety.

  • Training Aids: There is a lack of accessible training aids for blind athletes to learn and practice skills, such as skating in hockey or dribbling in beep baseball.

  • Communication Tools: Visually impaired athletes face unique challenges in communication, both during training and gameplay. There is a need for tools that can convey game state and player positioning through non-visual means.

Wheelchair-Based Sports:

• • Performance Tracking: There is a need for advanced analytics that can track wheelchair-specific performance metrics like push mechanics, acceleration, and agility.

  • Customization and Maintenance: Wheelchair customization is critical for athlete performance but remains largely anecdotal and lacks a data-driven approach. This leads to difficulties in optimizing setup and ensuring comfort and safety.

• High-Equipment Sports:

  • Training Aids and Feedback: In sports like para powerlifting, athletes lack real-time feedback mechanisms that can monitor bar speed and movement, critical for performance improvement.

  • Longitudinal Data Needs: There is a demand for tools that can track and analyze athlete performance over time, enabling data-driven training decisions and injury prevention strategies.

Results and Impact:

Broad Insights:

• • Identified specific technological gaps that hinder the development and competitiveness of adaptive sports.

  • Highlighted the need for accessible, sport-specific data collection tools that can provide real-time feedback and long-term analytics.

User-Centered Design Integration:

• • Through direct engagement with athletes and coaches, we ensured that the proposed solutions are aligned with real-world needs and preferences.

  • The findings have informed the development of new technologies that better support the unique requirements of adaptive sports, including smart equipment prototypes and accessible training aids.

Future Opportunities:

• • There is a significant opportunity to develop integrated, data-driven platforms that cater to the diverse needs of adaptive sports, enhancing both performance tracking and athlete engagement.

  • Our work highlights the potential for collaboration between technologists, researchers, and the adaptive sports community to drive innovation and inclusivity in sports technology.

These insights demonstrate the importance of user-centered research in designing effective AI systems for adaptive sports, ensuring that technological advancements translate into tangible benefits for athletes and their communities.

EVALUAtION methods
Pilot

We conducted a study comparing the performance of SPRITEs to each participant’s preferred accessibility tool. A secondary goal was to explore how SPRITEs impacted participants’ understanding of webpage organization and spatial layout. We recruited ten visually impaired participants for the study, including three low vision participants who used screen magnifiers, via word of mouth. Participants’ years of experience with their assistive technology ranged from 6 to 32 (mean= 17.2, S.D. = 8.83). 

STUDY PROCEDURE 

We designed a study to evaluate the effectiveness of SPRITEs compared to traditional assistive technologies used by visually impaired individuals, such as screen readers and magnifiers. The study aimed to assess how well SPRITEs support spatial tasks, such as navigating menus, interacting with tables, and exploring maps, which are typically challenging for existing nonvisual interfaces.

Participants:

• • 10 visually impaired users (6 male, 4 female) with varying levels of vision impairment and experience using assistive technologies. Participants had an average of 17.2 years (range: 6-32 years) of experience with their preferred technology, ensuring they were proficient in its use.

Study Setup:

• • Each participant completed two sets of eight tasks: one using their preferred assistive technology (PAT) and one using SPRITEs. The order of the conditions was counterbalanced to mitigate learning effects.

  • Tasks were performed on a standard laptop keyboard with a screen reader enabled, and all interactions were logged for analysis.

Task Categories:

• • Webpage Navigation: Locating specific sections and counting the number of headings in a page.

  • Menu Interaction: Identifying and interacting with menu items, including understanding hierarchical structures.

  • Table Navigation and Search: Finding specific cells in a table and searching for values within rows and columns.

  • Map Navigation: Searching for and identifying points on a map, including understanding street layouts.

Evaluation Metrics:

• • Task Completion Rate: Number of tasks successfully completed in each condition.

  • Task Completion Time: Time taken to complete each task.

  • User Satisfaction: Participants rated their experience using a 7-point Likert scale, and qualitative feedback was collected through post-task interviews.

Qualitative UX Methods:

• • Thematic Analysis: Used to analyze interview transcripts and identify recurring usability issues and participant preferences.

  • User-Centered Iterative Design: Findings from initial studies informed the refinement of SPRITEs’ interface and interaction techniques, enhancing usability and effectiveness.

RESULTS

The study demonstrated that SPRITEs significantly improved performance on spatial tasks compared to participants’ preferred assistive technologies.

Key Findings:

Task Completion Rates:

• • Participants successfully completed an average of 7.7 out of 8 tasks using SPRITEs, compared to 4.3 out of 8 tasks using their preferred assistive technology.

  • SPRITEs enabled three times as many participants to complete challenging spatial tasks, such as interacting with tables and hierarchical menus.

Task Completion Time:

• • For non-spatial tasks (e.g., webpage search), participants were generally faster using their preferred technology due to familiarity. However, for spatial tasks (e.g., navigating tables and maps), SPRITEs reduced task time significantly:

    • Table Interaction Tasks: SPRITEs reduced task completion time by an average of 43% compared to traditional screen readers.

    • Map Navigation Tasks: Participants completed map navigation tasks using SPRITEs in approximately 70% less time than with their preferred technology.

User Satisfaction:

• • Participants rated SPRITEs higher for tasks involving complex spatial layouts, such as navigating menus and tables, citing ease of understanding and efficiency as key benefits.

  • Qualitative feedback indicated that participants appreciated the intuitive nature of SPRITEs and found it easier to build a mental model of the webpage structure compared to linear navigation with screen readers.

Usability Insights:

• • Participants highlighted that the ability to navigate using tactile cues on the keyboard significantly reduced cognitive load and frustration, especially for tasks requiring multiple navigational steps.

  • The consistent mapping of webpage elements to keyboard regions enabled participants to remember locations of frequently accessed items, enhancing their efficiency and confidence over time.

IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS

These results demonstrate that SPRITEs substantially improve nonvisual access to complex web content by providing a spatial interaction model that aligns with the mental models of visually impaired users. The study underscores the importance of designing assistive technologies that go beyond traditional linear presentation, offering more intuitive, spatially-aware navigation to bridge the accessibility gap in digital interfaces. This work paves the way for further innovation in nonvisual interaction techniques, making digital content more accessible and usable for visually impaired individuals.