Paper Reading #1: HCI Methods and the Design of CHAMPION

Clicker provides an interactive interface for adults with CCN

Comments
Stephen Morrow
Derek Landini

Reference

HCI Methods for Including Adults with Disabilities in the Design of CHAMPION

Suzanne Prior

CHI EA '10, ACM New York, 2010

Summary

Traditional HCI methods that try to involve CCN users into the design stage of software development is a challenging task. As the number of users with disabilities increases in the workforce, it becomes necessary to develop new HCI methods that take into account the wide variety of users with CCN (Complex Communication Needs). So far the traditional methods in software development have failed to recognize the importance of including adults with CCN due to the lacking number of such adults in the workforce. However, as mentioned before, this is a changing trend.
In the development of CHAMPION, traditional HCI methods such as focus groups were adapted to include adults with cognotive disabilities. For example, some of the requirements questions were provided before the group meetings as to allow participants who use Augmentative and Alternative Communication devices to be prepared. Other modifications during the design-group stage of the CHAMPION development involved the use of story boards using magnets so that participants in wheelchairs could be better accommodated. Also, the team used Clicker, which is an interactive technology that allows users to interact through different peripherals, thus easing the transition of the users from story board to actual software interfaces. This created some sort of familiarity with the software interface. The expected outcome of this thesis is to increase the involvement of adults with CCN in software design since this particular group is becoming more frequent in the workforce.
Discussion
This paper could be the launching point of new HCI design paradigms since it attempts to include adults with diverse disabilities into the software development process. This is crucial because this group helps diversify and increase the scope of software developers. I think that once this idea is successfully ported to users with CCN, developers and HCI researchers will design equivalent paradigms that include other users with disabilities such as visual impairment.