Vote-by-Phone: an investigation of a usable and accessible IVR voting system

Abstract

One of the main goals of the Help America Vote Act (HAVA) was to ensure that voters with disabilities could vote independently. However, the current state of most voting methods does not allow for independent voting for everyone. In response to this issue, we tested a remote IVR voting system developed by Holmes and Kortum (2013), with an added audio speed adjustment feature and synthetic voice to increase usability and accessibility, especially for visually impaired voters (Piner, 2011). The focus of this research was to examine the viability and usability of the IVR voting system as an accessible voting platform for visually impaired voters. The system was tested by users with and without visual impairments, and usability was measured using the three ISO 9241-11 usability metrics (ISO 9241-11, 1998) of efficiency (time to complete a ballot), effectiveness (accuracy), and satisfaction (subjective usability). Results indicate that the IVR voting system could be a viable voting alternative to other established voting methods, with similar performance among sighted and visually impaired users.