Small Wins, Big Impact: Making Research More Accessible

by ICN Contributor Steve Levine, Strat360, Insights

When we talk about accessibility in market research, it’s easy to become overwhelmed. There are guidelines to follow, technology considerations, and a wide range of accessibility needs, and we may not always know how to address them.

That was the message I shared during my recent session with the Insights Career Network (ICN). We don’t have to solve every accessibility challenge at once. But we do need to make accessibility part of how we think about and design research.

Now Available from the Insights Association Accessible Insights Consortium

Free Research Accessibility Toolkit

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A good place to start is with a simple question:

Who might have difficulty participating in this research as we’ve designed it?

Think about some of the assumptions we routinely make. Can everyone navigate our survey? Is the language easy to understand? Can someone participate without using a mouse? Can they hear or see the content we’re presenting? Is the technology itself creating a barrier?

Once we start asking those questions, there are often things we can do right away. Use clear language. Check font size and contrast. Caption video. Make sure a survey can be navigated by keyboard. And rather than assuming what someone needs, ask.

These aren’t huge changes. But they can make the difference between someone being able to participate in our research and being left out.

Better Accessibility Can Mean Better Research

Something I think gets lost in the accessibility conversation is that accessible design often improves the experience for everyone.

Captions are important for people who are deaf or hard of hearing, but they can also help someone watching in a noisy environment or someone whose first language isn’t English. Clear language can help someone with a cognitive disability, but it can also make a survey easier for everyone to complete. Readable fonts and good contrast benefit far more people than those with low vision.

That’s one reason I don’t see accessibility simply as a compliance issue. It’s a research quality issue.

If people can’t fully participate, whose voices are we missing? And what does that mean for the decisions we’re making from the research?

The ICN Conversation Reinforced the Point

One of the things I enjoyed most about the ICN session was the discussion it generated.

People brought up ADHD, linguistic accessibility, screen readers, navigating without a mouse, epilepsy and flashing content, older adults, learning disabilities, and technology barriers.

I couldn’t have planned a better illustration of the point.

The more we talked about accessibility, the more we realized how many different people and circumstances can be affected. It also raised an important question: Are traditional definitions of disability broad enough to capture everyone who encounters accessibility barriers?

Broadening the Lens with STEP™

Permanent disability is an important part of the accessibility conversation, but people can also experience accessibility needs that are temporary, episodic or situational. Sometimes the environment or technology itself creates the barrier.

That thinking led me to develop the STEP™ Framework, which provides a more realistic way of understanding accessibility needs and how they show up in everyday life.

STEP™ isn’t intended to replace disability or disability identity. It’s about recognizing the wider range of circumstances that can affect someone’s ability to participate.

For researchers, that’s important. The better we understand accessibility needs, the better chance we have of including people who might otherwise be missed.

Start Somewhere

If you’re wondering where to begin, you don’t have to figure it out on your own.

The Accessible Insights Consortium (AIC), part of the Insights Association, developed the free Insights for All Toolkit with practical guidance for making research more accessible throughout the research process.

It’s comprehensive. You don’t have to do everything in it tomorrow.

Choose one thing you can do differently on your next project. Ask your research technology provider about accessibility. Test an aspect of your research experience from a different perspective. Ask participants what they need to participate fully.

Then build from there.

Small wins become big wins.

Ready for More?

The deck and video for Steve Levine’s session are available in our Insights Career Library!