Abstract
Regulatory standards and legislation have been crucial to improving the accessibility of governmental services provided with information systems. Adequate accessibility of mobile apps involves using appropriate processes for procuring, specifying, developing, evaluating and responding to accessibility complaints. A previous study from the authors of this study has investigated the approaches to considering accessibility in procurement and specification of 24 mobile apps from the Brazilian federal government. The present paper extends the previous study, including an accessibility evaluation of 22 of the mobile apps that were still live and an analysis of how the government agencies responded to formal complaints regarding the accessibility problems encountered in their apps. The analysis of the procurement and specification processes was done on the responses to freedom-of-information requests. Preliminary accessibility evaluations were performed using an automated evaluation tool, and formal complaints were filed on the official ombudsman service of the Brazilian Federal Government. The first results revealed that only seven out of 24 mobile systems included accessibility requirements in their procurement and specification. Eight agencies explicitly stated they did not include accessibility requirements. Some agencies classified the information as secret or stated they did not possess the information. All 22 mobile apps live in 2021 had accessibility problems encountered in the automated evaluation. Sixteen of the 22 mobile apps reported had responses stating the complaint was forwarded to the development team for correction, while three did not answer the complaint, and three did not respond accordingly. Elements from the Regulatory Compliance Theory provided grounds to identify low levels of enforcement of accessibility laws and low deterrence. Some agencies indicated in their responses that moral obligation and legitimacy played a critical factor in favouring accessibility requirements. A higher level of willing responses to formal complaints in official ombudsman services showed that social control of public organisations behaviour related to accessibility is an important aspect to be incentivised to promote accessibility.
Highlights
The increase in the use of digital government information systems has brought substantial opportunities for widening access to governmental services to citizens
This paper aimed to answer the question “how is accessibility considered in mobile apps from the Brazilian federal government in the specification, implementation and response to complaints of lack of accessibility”
We present the main results obtained from this study, including general data about the answers from government agencies on the accessibility requirements of their mobile information systems, the process of freedom-of-information requests, institutions in charge of the implementation of the systems and provision of supporting documents regarding the implementation, accessibility problems encountered in the automated evaluations, and responses to the complaints filed in the ombudsman services
Summary
The increase in the use of digital government information systems has brought substantial opportunities for widening access to governmental services to citizens. If appropriate measures are not taken to make such systems accessible to everyone, including disabled people, many citizens may have their rights refrained and limited access to essential governmental services. The concept of digital accessibility can be adapted from the definition from ISO 9241171 [International Standards Organization 2008] as the degree to which disabled users can use a digital product or website to fulfill their goals with efficiency, effectiveness and satisfaction. Digital accessibility plays an essential role in digital government initiatives since it aims to strive that all citizens have equal access to information and services provided by the government. The rights of people with disabilities are guaranteed by the Brazilian Constitution of 1988 and by extensive legislation that regulates how physical and digital accessibility should be implemented to remove attitudinal, architectural and virtual barriers people with disabilities face daily
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