Fully autonomous or “self-driving” vehicles are an emerging technology that may hold tremendous mobility potential for blind or visually impaired persons who are currently unable to drive a conventional motor vehicle. Despite the considerable potential of self-driving vehicle technology to address this mobility issue, however, the needs and preferences of persons with visual disabilities regarding this technology have been insufficiently investigated. In this article, we present the results of two studies that are focused on exploring the needs, preferences, and concerns of persons with visual impairments as it relates to self-driving vehicles. Study one investigated user acceptance, concerns, and willingness to buy partially and fully automated vehicles using a 39-question Internet-based survey distributed in the United States to visually impaired respondents (
n
= 516). Study two explores the opinions of 38 participants who are blind and low vision, using focus group methodology, regarding emerging self-driving vehicle technology. Collectively our findings suggest that while persons with visual impairments may be optimistic regarding the potential for enhanced mobility and independence that may result from the emergence of self-driving vehicles, concerns exist regarding the implementation of this technology that have been largely unexplored and under investigated.
Social networking sites (SNSs) like Facebook are widely used and have been broadly studied but despite years of investigation, accessibility complaints from individuals with visual impairments continue to persist. To investigate this issue we have conducted a quasi-ethnographic usability evaluation of Facebook involving blind participants, the mobile interface ( m.facebook.com ) and the JAWS screen reader on a desktop computer; a configuration that has been suggested in the related literature but insufficiently investigated. Six participants attempted 18 tasks designed to be representative of common SNS user activities. Of the features evaluated participants were most severely challenged by the process of creating a user profile and identifying other users with whom to establish relationships; two of the three core activities commonly viewed as characterizing SNSs. These findings suggest that despite recent progress additional research may be needed to make Facebook truly accessible for individuals with visual impairments.
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