Evaluating both usability and accessibility: the case of access@tour by action – a digital solution for accessible tourism
Creators: name: Teixeira, Pedro
name: Teixeira, Leonor
name: Eusébio, Celeste
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2024
Subjects: subject: Cell Biology
subject: Genetics
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: Developmental Biology

description: <b>Aim:</b> Information systems can help improve accessible tourism conditions. During the development of accessible technology, a crucial phase is testing. Notwithstanding, usability testing methodologies often dismiss accessibility. To overcome this gap, this work contributes with an innovative mixed-method testing methodology that integrates accessibility and usability components in technology evaluation. The capabilities of this methodological process are demonstrated through testing the prototype of a mobile solution for accessible tourism – <i>access@tour by action</i>. <b>Methods:</b> Nine experts evaluated the platform and helped correct accessibility failures. Afterward, 78 end-users tested the prototype. The procedure includes a set of tasks to be performed in the prototype and a final questionnaire. This questionnaire was specifically created for accessibility markets and is itself a significant contribution. <b>Results:</b> Testing with experts helped improve the prototype’s accessibility before it reached end-users. The results with end-users are provided in two distinct ways. First, the task performance measures are presented, which showed overall good completion rates. Second, the results obtained from the questionnaires are disclosed. Overall, the platform was considered relevant, accessible, and easy to use. Still, some minor flaws were identified regarding interface connectivity, symbology, and reading sequence. Thus, improvements are suggested based on obtained feedback. <b>Conclusion:</b> The testing procedure was essential to gather input from a user point of view, ensuring the final version of the <i>access@tour by action</i> is accessible and, therefore, “usable”. This allowed for validating the methodological method, significantly contributing to future research on evaluating technology accessibility. The <i>access@tour by action</i> intends to improve accessibility and equality in tourism, especially for people with specific needs, by supporting the management of accessibility information.By testing <i>access@tour by action</i>, it was possible to gather feedback on the usability and accessibility of the <i>access@tour by action</i> prototype. Besides, the presented testing methodology allows for improving accessible technology evaluation procedures. The <i>access@tour by action</i> intends to improve accessibility and equality in tourism, especially for people with specific needs, by supporting the management of accessibility information. By testing <i>access@tour by action</i>, it was possible to gather feedback on the usability and accessibility of the <i>access@tour by action</i> prototype. Besides, the presented testing methodology allows for improving accessible technology evaluation procedures.