2007 PhD Thesis Final Revised.pdf - Curtin University

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products and services, such as the assistive technology products, were simply too expensive for this group to purchase. This finding demonstrated the way in which the changing social categories played a part in shaping the welfare of people with disabilities. The desire for access to computing and the Internet by people with vision disabilities suggested that this group focused on a rights-based model whilst the large corporations perceived this group as a financial resource which presented a view based on the economic model. The findings of this thesis supported the view that the inclusion of such technologies with the purchase of a computer, or a reduction in the price, would have helped significantly in addressing this aspect of the disability divide. The fourth significant barrier of the disability divide were the existing difficulties faced by people who are blind and vision impaired in relation to educational opportunities. The survey revealed that the reason why a lack of education contributed to the disability divide was the fact that the undertaking of some kind of formal education demonstrated a significantly improved access to computing and the Internet and hence a lack of education contributed to the disability divide. The type of education did not have to be specific to computers or the Internet as most subjects required the interaction of these technologies. The results of this thesis supported the view that improvements in educational opportunities in any area for blind and vision impaired people would help in addressing the disability divide. The final significant aspect of the disability divide identified by this thesis was the need to improve the online experience for blind and vision impaired people through the use of real-time communication products. As previously discussed, one of the greatest benefits that the Internet can provide was the opportunity for people with similar disabilities to discuss disability-specific issues in online support groups. However, the survey revealed that, although most people in this group who used such products found the support vital to their interaction with disability issues, most blind and vision impaired people were not aware that such Internet tools existed beyond the use of e-mail and the World Wide Web. The findings of this thesis supported the view that the use of real-time communication should be encouraged by groups such as educators and blind and vision impaired organisations. 239
In essence, this study has revealed that people with vision disabilities perceive themselves as capable computing and Internet users. However, due to social and technological factors the numerous advantages of these technologies are being denied due to ineffective government and corporate support. Government policies based largely on the rights model have incorrectly assumed that people who are blind or vision impaired will pursue their own technological needs. Corporations, who base their policies on the economic model, have demonstrated a lack of awareness as to the needs of people with disabilities given the historically cycle ineffectiveness of new products and the high costs associated with assistive technology. In Australia, the Federal governments needs to take a more proactive approach until effective products and services are provided for people with vision disabilities. Furthermore, improved communication between government and corporate entities is required to guarantee that all parties work together to ensure that current future technological innovations include the needs of people with vision disabilities. Within this framework, the voices of those affected have expressed the importance of computing and Internet-related technologies in two ways: to allow people with disabilities to participate in the same products and services as the able- bodied online community, and to provide disability-specific benefits. While some disability-specific benefits relate specifically to online tools such as real-time online support services, this thesis has demonstrated that there far reaching benefits in improving external issues such as new educational opportunities, poverty and unemployment. As a person with both a personal and an academic interest in this area, it is my hope that these findings will contribute to the resolution of these issues so that future technological advancements will continue to improve the opportunities and independence of people who are blind or vision impaired. Limitations of the study Every effort was made in this research to ensure that the information gathered in this study was a reliable and valid reflection of those surveyed and interviewed. 240
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Faculty of Media, Society and Cultu
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ABSTRACT People with disabilities,
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3.0 ELEMENTS OF THE DISABILITY DIVI
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APPENDIX A: PERSONAL INTERVIEWS....
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The following orga
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INTRODUCTION Purpose of the study A
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! Are computing and Internet-relate
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disabilities in the workforce. As a
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entertainment package and, at worst
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Chapter 6, The provision of operati
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Australia, approximately four milli
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which people with disabilities perc
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dependence (J. Wilson & Wilson, 200
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economic model complements the righ
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ole of people with disabilities, go
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time. Policy and resulting legislat
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improved, funds were now available
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United Nations (UN) during the Inte
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actions and participation is connec
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occasional struggle for people with
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lindness within society also create
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communication. This chapter contrib
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seen as applicable to the developme
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Although clear-path and object-anal
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easily interpret text, making the A
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interface in their next OS release.
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networks so that there is exchange
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of information largely inaccessible
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again become sufficiently accessibl
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Figure 3.1 Household Computer or In
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of tertiary education compound the
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desire to repair the inferior body
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computing firms seemed to take issu
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an operating environment which was
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accessible and compatible with AT p
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cater for the needs of this group.
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4.2 Methodology for personal interv
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! Steger, John. Senior Consultant,
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All of these points were used with
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ates improved significantly due to
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(f) to assist in achieving positive
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disability-related discrimination i
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was that Section 508 only applied t
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in order to combat the disability d
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Such views again highlight the inco
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vision disabilities must rely on US
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5.0 THE PROVISION OF ONLINE INFORMA
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exist but not how to resolve the pr
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ace information for the Sydney 2000
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Essentially, the SOCOG case present
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In terms of finding out what people
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devices. The study concluded that t
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6.0 THE PROVISION OF OPERATING SYST
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networking infrastructure market, w
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Internet were accessible, it could
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developer conferences as a good way
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6.3 Disability-specific product ven
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company which tries to do everythin
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user through to large networks and
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with low vision was the addition of
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The UNIX platform has faced a diffi
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of writing, Microsoft is being sued
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character containing two dots. Brai
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Figure 6.7 Vario 80 Refreshable Bra
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Figure 6.10 Omni Phantom (SensAble
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addition there are other input-base
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HP, Cisco and IBM have all contribu
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‘upper-echelons’ of users would
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such as Vision Australia located at
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internal policies reflect the need
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arely given the chance to voice the
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1. to demonstrate the ways in which
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Section B focused on the use of com
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question was to determine the exten
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defined opinions in this study. The
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the type and significance of an ind
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The print and Braille formats were
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with 23 telephone interviews and 3
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Frequency 100 80 60 40 20 0 Valid 1
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Valid Male Female Total Gender Freq
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Frequency 200 150 100 50 0 Valid Fu
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Valid Degenerative Stable Total Vis
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Frequency 100 80 60 40 20 0 Valid M
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7.4.2 Computing and assistive techn
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Frequency 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Kno
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Frequency 100 80 60 40 20 0 Ability
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Frequency 150 120 90 60 30 0 Valid
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Frequency 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0
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N Valid Missing Familiarity of Inte
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Frequency 125 100 75 50 25 0 Valid
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Frequency 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Val
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Frequency 100 80 60 40 20 0 Valid D
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Internet session will contain a var
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Frequency 250 200 150 100 50 0 Vali
Page 189 and 190: Frequency 250 200 150 100 50 0 Vali
Page 191 and 192: Frequency 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Dis
Page 193 and 194: Frequency 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Gov
Page 195 and 196: Frequency 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0
Page 197 and 198: Frequency 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Des
Page 199 and 200: Frequency 100 80 60 40 20 0 Valid I
Page 201 and 202: 7.4.5 Open-ended comments The Comme
Page 203 and 204: There were also a number of comment
Page 205 and 206: 8.0 ANALYSIS OF FINDINGS 8.1 Introd
Page 207 and 208: levels of the working population. A
Page 209 and 210: the colour scheme question received
Page 211 and 212: Respondents were fairly evenly spre
Page 213 and 214: esult indicated that it is likely t
Page 215 and 216: able to interact with computing and
Page 217 and 218: Count Ability to Understand and Use
Page 219 and 220: Ability to Understand and Use a Com
Page 221 and 222: that knowledge of IT did not necess
Page 223 and 224: impaired people were not associated
Page 225 and 226: Count Income Total Income * Cost of
Page 227 and 228: 8.3.5 Disability-specific issues fo
Page 229 and 230: The final comparison focused on the
Page 231 and 232: CONCLUSION Addressing the research
Page 233 and 234: with vision disabilities until the
Page 235 and 236: ole of this policy, in terms of inf
Page 237 and 238: een largely resolved in recent time
Page 239: vision disabilities perceived the I
Page 243 and 244: ! the creation and implementation o
Page 245 and 246: Australian Federal Government. (200
Page 247 and 248: Galitz, W. (2002). Essential Guide
Page 249 and 250: Lindlif, T. R., & Shatzer, M. J. (1
Page 251 and 252: Stubbins, J. (1977). Social and Psy
Page 253 and 254: Zakon, R. (2002, 1 April). Hobbes'
Page 255 and 256: ETHICS APPROVAL: products and servi
Page 257 and 258: Name: _ Signature: Date: authorizat
Page 259 and 260: 13. In the United States, the Rehab
Page 261 and 262: 8. Do you perceive that people with
Page 263 and 264: Title: Department: Organisation: Ye
Page 265 and 266: 18. In your opinion, are educationa
Page 267 and 268: e found at http://www.vipsurvey.org
Page 269 and 270: [ ] 2 Living in shared accommodatio
Page 271 and 272: [ ] 1 Screen magnification software
Page 273 and 274: 24. My ability to use the Internet
Page 275 and 276: process which I mastered by myself:
Page 277 and 278: ! 5.2 For data tables that have two
Page 279 and 280: ! 10.5 Until user agents (including
Page 281: IBM International Business Machines
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