Equal-Level Interaction: A Case Study for Improving User Experiences of Visually-Impaired and Sighted People in Group Activities

Abstract

Assistive technologies improve the independence of visually-impaired users for various tasks. However, using them in group activities among visually-impaired and sighted users is apt to encourage sighted users to behave as supervisors but to induce visually-impaired users to be followers. This undermines the overall user experiences of both user groups, sometimes significantly. We address this issue by conceptualizing equal-level interaction, in which all users have the same roles and provide similar levels of contributions to the group activity. We have explored the proposed concept by designing a multiplayer card game running on a smartphone and conducting a user study with four groups of visually-impaired and sighted users. Results demonstrated positive support for realizing equal-level interaction. We hope that this paper could encourage further research efforts into realizing truly equal user experiences in group activities among mixed-ability users.

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