Mobile Application Accessibility in the Context of Visually Impaired Users

Abstract

The use of smartphones as a technological resource not only provides access to information and services but has also improved the quality of life of people with visual disabilities, allowing them to be more independent in daily activities. The objective of this research was to characterize the problems that visually impaired users encounter when using mobile applications and relate them to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, in order to identify possible gaps that make the guidelines insufficient to solve all users' difficulties. Mercado Livre was the application selected as object of study and five sessions of accessibility evaluation involving visually impaired users were carried out. The results demonstrated that many problems experienced by users could be related to violations of accessibility guidelines of the WCAG 2.0 as long as they were adapted to the context of mobile applications. Considering the importance of accessible mobile applications, we observed the need to extend studies that support developers and designers in achieving better accessibility in user interface design for users of assistive technologies, such as screen readers.