Exploring the Impact of Word Prediction Assistive Features on Smartphone Keyboards for Blind Users

TL;DR

This study examines how word prediction features affect typing performance for blind users on smartphones, finding slight speed improvements but increased workload and no accuracy benefits, suggesting areas for system enhancement.

Contribution

It provides empirical insights into the effects of word prediction assistive features on blind users' smartphone typing performance, highlighting limitations and potential improvements.

Findings

Word prediction slightly increases typing speed.

No significant improvement in accuracy with word prediction.

Word prediction increases physical and temporal workload.

Abstract

Assistive technologies have been developed to enhance blind users' typing performance, focusing on speed, accuracy, and effort reduction. One such technology is word prediction software, designed to minimize keystrokes required for text input. This study investigates the impact of word prediction on typing performance among blind users using an on-screen QWERTY keyboard. We conducted a comparative study involving eleven blind participants, evaluating both standard QWERTY input and word prediction-assisted typing. Our findings reveal that while word prediction slightly improves typing speed, it does not enhance typing accuracy and increases both physical and temporal workload compared to the default keyboard. We conclude with recommendations for improving word prediction systems, including more efficient editing methods and the integration of voice pitch variations to aid error recognition.