Investigating Accessibility Barriers in Software Development Tools Through the Blind People's Perspective
Resumo
Even when using screen reader tools, blind software developers face digital accessibility issues in collaborative work. Our primary goal was to investigate the difficulties faced by software developers, specifically in team integration and communication with professional tools. For that, we carried out a Rapid Literature Review (RLR) and an accessibility inspection using the Semiotic Inspection Method mediated by Screen Reader (SIM-SR) to investigate the communicability of task management tools and of instructions as coordination tools in the 3C collaboration model. As a result, we proposed 16 collaborative work considerations to the equity of blind people in software teams and to improve their daily development experiences mediated by management tools.
Palavras-chave:
Digital accessibility, blind software developers, Semiotic Inspection Method mediated by Screen Reader (SIM-SR), managment tool, collaborative work considerations
Referências
Akter, T., Cha, Y., Figueira, I., Branham, S. M., and Piper, A. M. (2023). “if i’m supposed to be the facilitator, i should be the host”: Understanding the accessibility of videoconferencing for blind and low vision meeting facilitators. In Proceedings of the 25th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, ASSETS ’23, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Armas, L., Rojas, H., and Renteria, R. (2020). Proposal for an accessible software development model. In 2020 3rd International Conference of Inclusive Technology and Education (CONTIE), pages 104–109.
Atique, A. B., Bertoni, A. P. S., da Fonte, A. R., Raya, Portilho, C. M., Neto, F., and Azevedo, T. (2025). Estudo de tic 2025 – indústria de software e serviços de tic no brasil. Technical report, Observatório Softex.
Barbosa, S. D. J., Silva, B. S. d., Silveira, M. S., Gasparini, I., Darin, T., and Barbosa, G. D. J. (2021). Interação Humano-Computador e Experiência do Usuário. Autopublição.
Carvalho, L. P. (2021). Mis-lt: Um método para avaliação de acessibilidade e comunicabilidade de sistemas interativos. Master’s thesis, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais.
Cha, Y., Figueira, I., Ayala, J., Edwards, E. J., Garcia, J., van der Hoek, A., and Branham, S. M. (2024a). ”do you want me to participate or not?”: Investigating the accessibility of software development meetings for blind and low vision professionals. In Proceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI ’24, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Cha, Y., Jackson, V., Figueira, I., Branham, S. M., and van der Hoek, A. (2024b). Understanding the career mobility of blind and low vision software professionals. In Proceedings of the 2024 IEEE/ACM 17th International Conference on Cooperative and Human Aspects of Software Engineering, CHASE ’24, page 170–181, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
de Souza, C. S., Leitão, C. F., Prates, R. O., and da Silva, E. J. (2006). The semiotic inspection method. In Proceedings of VII Brazilian Symposium on Human Factors in Computing Systems, IHC ’06, page 148–157, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Dourish, P. and Bellotti, V. (1992). Awareness and coordination in shared workspaces. In Proceedings of the 1992 ACM Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work, CSCW ’92, page 107–114, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Ellis, C. A., Gibbs, S. J., and Rein, G. (1991). Groupware: some issues and experiences. Commun. ACM, 34(1):39–58.
Escorcer, M., de Queiroz, L., Lima, K., Passos, J. K., Neiva, A., and Soares, L. (2024). Remote work in it: Benefits, challenges and future directions. In Anais do XV Workshop de Sistemas de Informação, pages 120–124, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Fagerholm, F. and Münch, J. (2012). Developer experience: Concept and definition. In 2012 International Conference on Software and System Process (ICSSP), pages 73–77.
Fuks, H., Raposo, A. B., Gerosa, M. A., Pimentel, M., Filippo, D., and Lucena, C. d. (2011). Teorias e modelos de colaboração. Sistemas colaborativos, pages 16–33.
Hu, D., Bhuiyan, M. M., Lim, S., Wiese, J., and Lee, S. W. (2024). Unpacking task management tools, values, and worker dynamics. CHIWORK ’24, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Huff, E. W., Boateng, K., Moster, M., Rodeghero, P., and Brinkley, J. (2020). Examining the work experience of programmers with visual impairments. In 2020 IEEE International Conference on Software Maintenance and Evolution (ICSME), pages 707–711.
Johnson, J., Begel, A., Ladner, R., and Ford, D. (2022). Program-l: Online help seeking behaviors by blind and low vision programmers. In 2022 IEEE Symposium on Visual Languages and Human-Centric Computing (VL/HCC), pages 1–6.
Kuusinen, K. (2016). Are software developers just users of development tools? assessing developer experience of a graphical user interface designer. In Bogdan, C., Gulliksen, J., Sauer, S., Forbrig, P., Winckler, M., Johnson, C., Palanque, P., Bernhaupt, R., and Kis, F., editors, Human-Centered and Error-Resilient Systems Development, pages 215–233, Cham. Springer International Publishing.
Lake, B. and Maidment, D. W. (2023). “is this a new dawn for accessibility?” a qualitative interview study assessing remote working experiences in adults with physical disabilities post covid-19. WORK, 76(2):437–451. PMID: 37092205.
Melo, G. (2026). Supplementary inspection material: Accessibility and communicability inspection on microsoft planner. [link].
Melo, G. L. N., da Silva Menezes, N., dos Santos Maciel, A. C., Teran, L. A., da Rocha, T. Á., de Souza, C. R. B., and Mota, M. P. (2024). Accessibility issues in establishing awareness on remote collaborative software development. Journal on Interactive Systems, 15(1):294–310.
Miranda, D., Araújo, J., and Liebel, G. (2024). A conceptual model for web accessibility requirements in agile development. In 2024 IEEE/ACM Workshop on Multi-disciplinary, Open, and RElevant Requirements Engineering (MO2RE), pages 15–21.
Nascimento, F., Barbosa, P., and Viana, W. (2022). Programando às cegas: investigando a acessibilidade de ambientes de desenvolvimento de software. In Anais do VII Workshop sobre Aspectos Sociais, Humanos e Econômicos de Software, pages 1–10, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Pandey, M., Bondre, S., O’Modhrain, S., and Oney, S. (2022). Accessibility of ui frameworks and libraries for programmers with visual impairments. In 2022 IEEE Symposium on Visual Languages and Human-Centric Computing (VL/HCC), pages 1–10.
Pereira, I. C., Gomes, G., Ribeiro, D. M., Souza, A. d., Lucena, D., and Pinto, G. (2023). Supporting the careers of developers with disabilities: Lessons from zup innovation. IEEE Software, 40(5):58–65.
Rocha, T., Teran, L., Silva, A., Souza, C., and Mota, M. (2023). Awareness no desenvolvimento colaborativo remoto: Uma perspectiva sobre acessibilidade. In Anais do XVIII Simpósio Brasileiro de Sistemas Colaborativos, pages 140–153, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Silva, A. M. d., Sampaio, S. C. B., and Marinho, M. L. (2021). Using software engineering and agile methods to improve inclusion and team diversity. In Proceedings of the XIX Brazilian Symposium on Software Quality, SBQS ’20, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Silva, J. S. e., Gonçalves, R., Branco, F., Pereira, A., Au-Yong-Oliveira, M., and Martins, J. (2019). Accessible software development: a conceptual model proposal. Universal Access in the Information Society, 18(3):703 – 716. Cited by: 16.
Sin, J. C. C. and Kathiarayan, V. (2023). The evolution of remote work: analysing strategies for effective virtual team management and collaboration. Int J Manag Commer Innov, 11(1):91–101.
Skura, S. d. F., Beal, M. M., and Franciele (2024). Desafios sobre acessibilidade em ferramentas case. In Anais do XXXV Simpósio Brasileiro de Informática na Educação, pages 1349–1362, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Smela, B., Toumi, M., Świerk, K., Francois, C., Biernikiewicz, M., Clay, E., and Boyer, L. (2023). Rapid literature review: Definition and methodology. Journal of Market Access & Health Policy, 11(1).
Armas, L., Rojas, H., and Renteria, R. (2020). Proposal for an accessible software development model. In 2020 3rd International Conference of Inclusive Technology and Education (CONTIE), pages 104–109.
Atique, A. B., Bertoni, A. P. S., da Fonte, A. R., Raya, Portilho, C. M., Neto, F., and Azevedo, T. (2025). Estudo de tic 2025 – indústria de software e serviços de tic no brasil. Technical report, Observatório Softex.
Barbosa, S. D. J., Silva, B. S. d., Silveira, M. S., Gasparini, I., Darin, T., and Barbosa, G. D. J. (2021). Interação Humano-Computador e Experiência do Usuário. Autopublição.
Carvalho, L. P. (2021). Mis-lt: Um método para avaliação de acessibilidade e comunicabilidade de sistemas interativos. Master’s thesis, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais.
Cha, Y., Figueira, I., Ayala, J., Edwards, E. J., Garcia, J., van der Hoek, A., and Branham, S. M. (2024a). ”do you want me to participate or not?”: Investigating the accessibility of software development meetings for blind and low vision professionals. In Proceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, CHI ’24, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Cha, Y., Jackson, V., Figueira, I., Branham, S. M., and van der Hoek, A. (2024b). Understanding the career mobility of blind and low vision software professionals. In Proceedings of the 2024 IEEE/ACM 17th International Conference on Cooperative and Human Aspects of Software Engineering, CHASE ’24, page 170–181, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
de Souza, C. S., Leitão, C. F., Prates, R. O., and da Silva, E. J. (2006). The semiotic inspection method. In Proceedings of VII Brazilian Symposium on Human Factors in Computing Systems, IHC ’06, page 148–157, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Dourish, P. and Bellotti, V. (1992). Awareness and coordination in shared workspaces. In Proceedings of the 1992 ACM Conference on Computer-Supported Cooperative Work, CSCW ’92, page 107–114, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Ellis, C. A., Gibbs, S. J., and Rein, G. (1991). Groupware: some issues and experiences. Commun. ACM, 34(1):39–58.
Escorcer, M., de Queiroz, L., Lima, K., Passos, J. K., Neiva, A., and Soares, L. (2024). Remote work in it: Benefits, challenges and future directions. In Anais do XV Workshop de Sistemas de Informação, pages 120–124, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Fagerholm, F. and Münch, J. (2012). Developer experience: Concept and definition. In 2012 International Conference on Software and System Process (ICSSP), pages 73–77.
Fuks, H., Raposo, A. B., Gerosa, M. A., Pimentel, M., Filippo, D., and Lucena, C. d. (2011). Teorias e modelos de colaboração. Sistemas colaborativos, pages 16–33.
Hu, D., Bhuiyan, M. M., Lim, S., Wiese, J., and Lee, S. W. (2024). Unpacking task management tools, values, and worker dynamics. CHIWORK ’24, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Huff, E. W., Boateng, K., Moster, M., Rodeghero, P., and Brinkley, J. (2020). Examining the work experience of programmers with visual impairments. In 2020 IEEE International Conference on Software Maintenance and Evolution (ICSME), pages 707–711.
Johnson, J., Begel, A., Ladner, R., and Ford, D. (2022). Program-l: Online help seeking behaviors by blind and low vision programmers. In 2022 IEEE Symposium on Visual Languages and Human-Centric Computing (VL/HCC), pages 1–6.
Kuusinen, K. (2016). Are software developers just users of development tools? assessing developer experience of a graphical user interface designer. In Bogdan, C., Gulliksen, J., Sauer, S., Forbrig, P., Winckler, M., Johnson, C., Palanque, P., Bernhaupt, R., and Kis, F., editors, Human-Centered and Error-Resilient Systems Development, pages 215–233, Cham. Springer International Publishing.
Lake, B. and Maidment, D. W. (2023). “is this a new dawn for accessibility?” a qualitative interview study assessing remote working experiences in adults with physical disabilities post covid-19. WORK, 76(2):437–451. PMID: 37092205.
Melo, G. (2026). Supplementary inspection material: Accessibility and communicability inspection on microsoft planner. [link].
Melo, G. L. N., da Silva Menezes, N., dos Santos Maciel, A. C., Teran, L. A., da Rocha, T. Á., de Souza, C. R. B., and Mota, M. P. (2024). Accessibility issues in establishing awareness on remote collaborative software development. Journal on Interactive Systems, 15(1):294–310.
Miranda, D., Araújo, J., and Liebel, G. (2024). A conceptual model for web accessibility requirements in agile development. In 2024 IEEE/ACM Workshop on Multi-disciplinary, Open, and RElevant Requirements Engineering (MO2RE), pages 15–21.
Nascimento, F., Barbosa, P., and Viana, W. (2022). Programando às cegas: investigando a acessibilidade de ambientes de desenvolvimento de software. In Anais do VII Workshop sobre Aspectos Sociais, Humanos e Econômicos de Software, pages 1–10, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Pandey, M., Bondre, S., O’Modhrain, S., and Oney, S. (2022). Accessibility of ui frameworks and libraries for programmers with visual impairments. In 2022 IEEE Symposium on Visual Languages and Human-Centric Computing (VL/HCC), pages 1–10.
Pereira, I. C., Gomes, G., Ribeiro, D. M., Souza, A. d., Lucena, D., and Pinto, G. (2023). Supporting the careers of developers with disabilities: Lessons from zup innovation. IEEE Software, 40(5):58–65.
Rocha, T., Teran, L., Silva, A., Souza, C., and Mota, M. (2023). Awareness no desenvolvimento colaborativo remoto: Uma perspectiva sobre acessibilidade. In Anais do XVIII Simpósio Brasileiro de Sistemas Colaborativos, pages 140–153, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Silva, A. M. d., Sampaio, S. C. B., and Marinho, M. L. (2021). Using software engineering and agile methods to improve inclusion and team diversity. In Proceedings of the XIX Brazilian Symposium on Software Quality, SBQS ’20, New York, NY, USA. Association for Computing Machinery.
Silva, J. S. e., Gonçalves, R., Branco, F., Pereira, A., Au-Yong-Oliveira, M., and Martins, J. (2019). Accessible software development: a conceptual model proposal. Universal Access in the Information Society, 18(3):703 – 716. Cited by: 16.
Sin, J. C. C. and Kathiarayan, V. (2023). The evolution of remote work: analysing strategies for effective virtual team management and collaboration. Int J Manag Commer Innov, 11(1):91–101.
Skura, S. d. F., Beal, M. M., and Franciele (2024). Desafios sobre acessibilidade em ferramentas case. In Anais do XXXV Simpósio Brasileiro de Informática na Educação, pages 1349–1362, Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. SBC.
Smela, B., Toumi, M., Świerk, K., Francois, C., Biernikiewicz, M., Clay, E., and Boyer, L. (2023). Rapid literature review: Definition and methodology. Journal of Market Access & Health Policy, 11(1).
Publicado
08/06/2026
Como Citar
MELO, Giselle Lorrane Nobre; DOS SANTOS, Suzane Santos; TERAN, Luciano Arruda; MONTEIRO, Ingrid Teixeira; RODRIGUES, Kamila da Hora Rios; MOTA, Marcelle Pereira.
Investigating Accessibility Barriers in Software Development Tools Through the Blind People's Perspective. In: SIMPÓSIO BRASILEIRO DE SISTEMAS COLABORATIVOS (SBSC), 21. , 2026, Porto Alegre/RS.
Anais [...].
Porto Alegre: Sociedade Brasileira de Computação,
2026
.
p. 171-185.
ISSN 2326-2842.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5753/sbsc.2026.20813.
