Disabilities and Barriers

This section will illustrate various disabilities and how a disability prevents users from accessing information on the Internet. A barrier is defined as those parts of a Web page that are inaccessible to people with disabilities. In the majority of sites, barriers can be removed from Web pages without compromising the integrity, presentation or the author's "creative license" of their site.

Blindness or Low Vision

People who are blind access the Internet with assistive technology devices like a screen reader. The screen reader enters a Web page and reads the text on the page out loud so the blind individual can hear what is on the page. The blind use special keyboard commands to navigate the screen reader through the site. The following are barriers for the blind and low vision.

Images that do not have alt text
Data tables that do not make sense when read by a screen reader
Video that has no description of the visual content
Web pages that do not allow the user to control font size
Confusing or inconsistent page layout or organization
Inconsistent positioning of navigation menus from page to page

Deafness and Hard of Hearing

All audio (to include video with audio) information needs to have text transcripts or equivalents. The following are barriers for deaf and hard of hearing.

No transcripts for audio
No captions (subtitles) for video
No way to adjust the volume on the audio

Color Blindness

Color contrast poses a problem for people who are color blind. The following are barriers to individuals with colorblindness.

Contrast between background color and text color
Using color as the only way to convey information

Cognitive Disabilities

Individuals with cognitive disabilities often have difficulty with complicated language and/or page layout. They might have difficulty focusing or just need a little more time to read the material in a timed response. The following are barriers to accessibility for individuals with a cognitive disability:

Flashing or scrolling marquees
Use of overly complex language
Time-limited responses
Confusing or inconsistent page layout or organization
Inconsistent positioning of navigation menus from page to page

Motor Disabilities

People with motor control disabilities may not be able to use the keyboard or mouse in a traditional way. While being able to hear and see information on pages, people with motor disabilities encounter problems with navigation through pages. The following are barriers individuals with motor disability.

Inability to use a standard mouse
No keyboard alternatives for navigation
Time-limited responses
Links that are small or very close together

If you are interested in these and further explanations of various disabilities and barriers associated to them, please refer to How People with Disabilities Use the Web from the W3C.