Overview
Including people with disabilities in user research is fundamentally the right thing to do, because their experiences matter just as much as those of the non-disabled users that are typically represented in research. In addition, including people with disabilities in research makes good business sense, because it leads to products that are more inclusive and generally more accessible, usable, and delightful for everyone.
This tutorial will help participants to expand their research practices by integrating people with disabilities into research. We will discuss barriers to conducting inclusive research and strategize about lean and robust ways to address institutional resistance.
The tutorial will focus on pragmatic steps we can take to diversify recruiting, the specialized skills needed to conduct research with people with disabilities, and the unique ethical considerations that we face.
We will cover the following topics:
- Getting leadership buy-in to include people with disabilities in research
- The ethics of conducting research with people with disabilities
- Making the research process accessible and inclusive
- Using inclusive research to drive inclusive design
By the end of the tutorial, participants will have a greater understanding of the value of including people with disabilities in research, as well as a toolkit that they can begin implementing immediately to make their research practice more inclusive.
This video has been edited to protect the privacy of participants in the live tutorial.
Instructors
Greg Weinstein is a design researcher, acoustic anthropologist, and accessibility evangelist. He advocates for making user research inclusive from end to end, so that design can serve and empower people in their limitless diversity. He is currently a Senior Accessibility Designer at CVS Health, where he also leads Inclusive Research on the Design Accessibility team. Outside of work, you’re likely to find Greg watching a ballgame with his cats, reading a good mystery, or supporting the EPIC conference.
With a background spanning the breadth of the user experience journey, Erica McCoy is committed to including accessibility in the design process from the beginning. She advocates that “shifting left” not only makes the web more usable for people of all abilities, but that it is vital to making digital products more inclusive and diverse. In her current role as a Senior Accessibility Designer at CVS, Erica promotes accessibility awareness and supports design teams through training, evaluations and guidance. Outside of work you might find her exploring the great outdoors, experiencing different cultures through world travel, or dreaming up her next big adventure.
