Summary Report- Spring 2012
Introduction
The DIAGRAM Center Reading Technology Survey, an online survey conducted during February 2012, seems to have revealed some clear trends in how people who are blind and visually impaired obtain and access reading materials.
With only ten questions, the results of the survey can be quickly reviewed and are available below in HTML with the data presented as tables. A non-accessible
PDF version (provided by Survey Gizmo) is also available.
While the number of respondents was relatively high for research in low-incidence disability (230+/-), the demographic data reveal that most respondents were from a cohort that does not necessarily represent the majority of blind or visually impaired readers.
Most of the respondents were blind (59.4%) and employed, retired or in school with only 12.1% self-identifying as unemployed. In addition, respondents tended to be computer users who accessed electronic files with screen-readers, screen magnifiers or refreshable braille with only 11.7% reporting that they do not use assistive technology.
Add to this the fact that this was an online survey that was announced via email and social media, it is perhaps not surprising that our cohort was largely employed and technically savvy.
However, despite the similarities of the respondents, it was nonetheless striking that their responses were clearly skewed toward certain products and agencies.
In every category of reading material (news and information, pleasure, work, and educational), the same five reading technologies dominated the responses. Screen readers (such as JAWS, VoiceOver, and NVDA) were reported as the most used in every category. After screen readers, came Library of Congress players, Apple products, Kurzweil products and Victor products in different orders of preference depending on the type of reading material.
More varied responses came from the question of where respondents obtained reading materials. If we combine the responses for DIAGRAM Center Reading Technology Survey “sometimes” and “often”, respondents report obtaining reading materials from various organizations in the following order:
- National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped 80.5%
- Mainstream news and information Web sites (New York Times, CNN, etc.) 68.9%
- Bookshare 56.8%
- Learning Ally (formerly RFB&D) 40.9%
- American Printing House for the Blind 38.3%
- Public library 38.3%
- Audible.com 31.2%
- Amazon 30.5%
- Disability student services 19.3%
- School library 19.3%
It should be noted that since few of the respondents were students, it’s logical that DSS offices and school libraries were seldom used. Similarly, Bookshare’s high ranking may have been skewed since, as the lead organization in DIAGRAM, Bookshare helped to disseminate the online survey and thus more Bookshare members may have answered than if the survey was more broadly advertised.
Certainly, any research should be repeated before it’s considered meaningful and this survey is only a first step in discovering what tools and technologies people who are blind and visually impaired are actually using. Such data are valuable since with limited resources dedicated to assistive technology, support should be focused on those devices and reading tools that are most used by the people who rely on them for access to education, employment and enjoyment.
Full Results
1. For news and information reading, what hardware or software reading tools do you use to access newspapers, magazines or other publications? Please select all that apply. Total responses: 236
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Screen reader (JAWS, VoiceOver, NVDA, etc.) on a laptop, netbook, desktop computer or handheld device |
152 |
64.4% |
| Library of Congress NLS player |
97 |
41.1% |
| Apple device (iPhone, iPad, etc.) |
96 |
40.7% |
| Victor Reader (any model) |
92 |
39% |
| Other |
45 |
19.1% |
| Kurzweil software or device |
40 |
16.9% |
| Screen magnifier (ZoomText, Zoom, Magnifier, etc.) on a laptop, netbook, desktop computer or handheld device |
37 |
15.7% |
| I do not obtain news and information via portable reading devices. |
26 |
11% |
| Android device (phone, tablet, etc.) |
18 |
7.6% |
| BookSense |
17 |
7.2% |
| Kindle (any model) |
15 |
6.4% |
| BookPort |
12 |
5.1% |
| Plextalk (any model) |
10 |
4.2% |
| Nook (any model) |
3 |
1.3% |
| ReadHear |
3 |
1.3% |
| EasyReader |
2 |
0.8% |
| Milestone |
1 |
0.4% |
2. For pleasure reading, what hardware or software reading tools do you use to access books and other publications? Please select all that apply. Total responses: 231
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Screen reader (JAWS, VoiceOver, NVDA, etc.) on a laptop, netbook, desktop computer or handheld device |
131 |
56.7% |
| Library of Congress NLS player |
123 |
53.2% |
| Victor Reader (any model) |
104 |
45% |
| Apple device (iPhone, iPad, etc.) |
83 |
35.9% |
| Other |
53 |
22.9% |
| Kurzweil software or device |
38 |
16.5% |
| Screen magnifier (ZoomText, Zoom, Magnifier, etc.) on a laptop, netbook, desktop computer or handheld device |
29 |
12.6% |
| Kindle (any model) |
20 |
8.7% |
| BookSense |
19 |
8.2% |
| Plextalk (any model) |
14 |
6.1% |
| I do not obtain pleasure-reading materials via portable reading devices. |
13 |
5.6% |
| BookPort |
13 |
5.6% |
| Android device (phone, tablet, etc.) |
11 |
4.8% |
| Nook (any model) |
5 |
2.2% |
| Milestone |
4 |
1.7% |
| ReadHear |
3 |
1.3% |
| EasyReader |
2 |
0.9% |
3. For work reading, what hardware or software reading tools do you use to access books and other publications? Please select all that apply. Total responses: 231
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Screen reader (JAWS, VoiceOver, NVDA, etc.) on a laptop, netbook, desktop computer or handheld device |
143 |
61.9% |
| Apple device (iPhone, iPad, etc.) |
60 |
26% |
| Victor Reader (any model) |
58 |
25.1% |
| Other |
58 |
25.1% |
| Kurzweil software or device |
50 |
21.6% |
| Library of Congress NLS player |
41 |
17.7% |
| Screen magnifier (ZoomText, Zoom, Magnifier, etc.) on a laptop, netbook, desktop computer or handheld device |
37 |
16% |
| I do not obtain work-reading materials via portable reading devices. |
33 |
14.3% |
| Kindle (any model) |
10 |
4.3% |
| Plextalk (any model) |
10 |
4.3% |
| BookSense |
9 |
3.9% |
| BookPort |
9 |
3.9% |
| Android device (phone, tablet, etc.) |
5 |
2.2% |
| EasyReader |
4 |
1.7% |
| Milestone |
2 |
0.9% |
| ReadHear |
1 |
0.4% |
| Nook (any model) |
1 |
0.4% |
4. For educational reading, what hardware or software reading tools do you use to access books and other publications? Please select all that apply. Total responses: 228
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Screen reader (JAWS, VoiceOver, NVDA, etc.) on a laptop, netbook, desktop computer or handheld device |
141 |
61.8% |
| Library of Congress NLS player |
86 |
37.7% |
| Victor Reader (any model) |
85 |
37.3% |
| Apple device (iPhone, iPad, etc.) |
65 |
28.5% |
| Kurzweil software or device |
46 |
20.2% |
| Other |
43 |
18.9% |
| Screen magnifier (ZoomText, Zoom, Magnifier, etc.) on a laptop, netbook, desktop computer or handheld device |
32 |
14% |
| I do not obtain educational materials via portable reading devices. |
30 |
13.2% |
| BookSense |
14 |
6.1% |
| BookPort |
12 |
5.3% |
| Kindle (any model) |
12 |
5.3% |
| Plextalk (any model) |
11 |
4.8% |
| ReadHear |
6 |
2.6% |
| Android device (phone, tablet, etc.) |
5 |
2.2% |
| Milestone |
2 |
0.9% |
| EasyReader |
2 |
0.9% |
| Nook (any model) |
0 |
0% |
5. Where do you access most of your reading material? Three responses are offered in the dropdown menus below: rarely or never, sometimes or often. Please select one response for each choice.
| Organization |
Rarely or never |
Sometimes |
Often |
Number of responses |
| Amazon |
69.5% |
21.8% |
8.6% |
197 |
| American Printing House for the Blind |
61.7% |
28.1% |
10.2% |
196 |
| Audible.com |
68.8% |
17.8% |
13.4% |
202 |
| Bookshare |
43.1% |
24.6% |
32.2% |
211 |
| Learning Ally (formerly RFB&D) |
58.9% |
28.2% |
12.9% |
209 |
| National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped |
19.5% |
14.0% |
66.5% |
215 |
| Mainstream news and information Web sites (New York Times, CNN, etc.) |
31.2% |
34.0% |
34.9% |
215 |
| Disability student services |
80.7% |
9.9% |
9.4% |
202 |
| School library |
80.7% |
13.4% |
5.9% |
202 |
| Public library |
61.7% |
29.0% |
9.3% |
214 |
6. Which best describes your current school enrollment? Total responses: 230
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Elementary school student |
3 |
1.3% |
| Middle school student |
8 |
3.5% |
| High school student |
8 |
3.5% |
| College student (undergraduate/graduate) |
28 |
12.2% |
| Post-graduate student |
17 |
7.4% |
| Not attending school |
166 |
72.2% |
7. Which best describes your current employment? Total responses: 232
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Employed |
114 |
49.1% |
| Unemployed |
28 |
12.1% |
| Unemployed but in school |
36 |
15.5% |
| Retired |
54 |
23.3% |
8. What best describes your level of vision? Total responses: 234
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Blind |
139 |
59.4% |
| Low vision |
63 |
26.9% |
| Other print disability |
6 |
2.6% |
| Sighted, responding on behalf of a person with a print disability |
9 |
3.8% |
| Sighted |
17 |
7.3% |
9. What assistive technology, if any, do you primarily use to access electronic reading materials? Total responses: 231
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Screen magnifier |
30 |
13% |
| Screen reader |
140 |
60.6% |
| Refreshable Braille display |
34 |
14.7% |
| None |
27 |
11.7% |
10. Do you live in the U.S.? Total responses: 233
| Value |
Count |
Percent |
| Yes |
218 |
93.6% |
| No |
3 |
1.3% |
| If you do not live in the U.S., please list your country of residence |
12 |
5.2% |
