ToPSen: Task-Oriented Priming and Sensory Alignment for Comparing Coding Strategies Between Sighted and Blind Programmers

TL;DR

This study introduces ToPSen, a framework that compares coding strategies of sighted and blind programmers working with audio feedback, revealing differences in information processing and guiding accessible tool design.

Contribution

We propose ToPSen, a novel framework that reframes sensory constraints as technical requirements, enabling better understanding of coding strategies across abilities.

Findings

Blind programmers maintain more accurate mental models.

Blind programmers process more information in working memory.

Differences in structural information processing highlight IDE design gaps.

Abstract

This paper examines how the coding strategies of sighted and blind programmers differ when working with audio feedback alone. The goal is to identify challenges in mixed-ability collaboration, particularly when sighted programmers work with blind peers or teach programming to blind students. To overcome limitations of traditional blindness simulation studies, we proposed Task-Oriented Priming and Sensory Alignment (ToPSen), a design framework that reframes sensory constraints as technical requirements rather than as a disability. Through a study of 12 blind and 12 sighted participants coding non-visually, we found that expert blind programmers maintain more accurate mental models and process more information in working memory than sighted programmers using ToPSen. Our analysis revealed that blind and sighted programmers process structural information differently, exposing gaps in current IDE designs. These insights inform our guidelines for improving the accessibility of programming tools and fostering effective mixed-ability collaboration.