Unlocking Inclusivity: Designing Digital Experiences for Neurodiversity
Scroll
Article Summary
- The Local Peoples meetup emphasised the need for tailored digital designs for neurodiverse users, addressing challenges faced by those with ADHD, autism, and dyslexia.
- Designers must go beyond existing accessibility guidelines, focusing on clear layouts and minimal distractions for neurodiverse users.
- A cultural shift is needed in design, prioritising inclusivity and ongoing user research for more accessible experiences.
By Local Peoples
When we think about accessibility in design, it’s easy to focus on visible disabilities or physical impairments, such as mobility issues or vision loss.
However, neurodiversity – the umbrella term for a range of cognitive variations such as ADHD, autism, dyslexia, and others – is often left out of the conversation.
At our last meetup of the year, “Designing for Neurodiverse and Dyslexic Users,” illuminated the challenges and opportunities in creating more inclusive designs for this often-overlooked community.
It explored both the barriers faced by neurodiverse individuals and the unique challenges that designers encounter when creating inclusive experiences.
The meet-up brought together a diverse group of participants, many of whom identified as neurodiverse or had close relationships with individuals who did (it’s estimated that 15% to 20% of the global population is estimated to be neurodiverse).
These first-hand perspectives and this post on LinkedIn provide valuable insights into how design can better accommodate neurodiverse users.
In summary, the workshop explored the following questions
Neurodiversity: What Are We Talking About?
Neurodiversity encompasses a broad spectrum of conditions, including but not limited to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Asperger’s Syndrome, Dyslexia, and Dysgraphia.
Each of these conditions presents its own set of cognitive, sensory, and behavioral traits, which can significantly affect how individuals interact with digital content.
What unites these conditions is a shared experience of difference in how the brain processes information.
Barriers Faced by Neurodiverse Audiences
For neurodiverse users, barriers often arise from the way digital content is structured. People on the autism spectrum, for instance, may need to understand the full picture of an interaction before proceeding.
This means that knowing the sequence of steps or understanding the end goal of an interaction is crucial for them to feel confident in providing the correct answer in a given moment.
Individuals with ADHD or dyslexia face significant hurdles with text-heavy content, especially when it is accompanied by distractions such as moving images, pop-ups, or excessive links.
These elements make it difficult to focus and process the information, leading to frustration and disengagement.
Dyslexia can add another layer of difficulty, as users may struggle with reading, spelling, and writing, making it harder to interact with text-heavy websites or platforms.
In addition to content, design elements such as color contrast, font size, type, spacing, and letter case were flagged as crucial factors in ensuring accessibility for neurodiverse users.
Subtle design choices can either alleviate or exacerbate these challenges, emphasizing the importance of thoughtful, user-centric design.
The Need for Specialised Design Approaches
The discussion around designing for neurodiverse users highlighted the importance of user research and service design practices that include neurodiverse individuals.
While the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) provide useful advice for making websites and content more accessible, they often fall short when it comes to neurodiversity.
There’s a gap in the existing accessibility framework for catering to the cognitive and behavioral needs of neurodiverse users.
Designing for these users requires a shift in thinking. It’s not enough to rely on templates or accommodations that are already in place.
Instead, there’s a need for a deeper, more tailored approach to design. For example, neurodiverse users often benefit from straightforward layouts, clear hierarchies, and minimal distractions.
Providing clear, predictable pathways through content can help users with ADHD or autism to stay engaged and focused.
Moreover, inclusive design needs to go beyond technical fixes – it should also be embedded in the culture of the design process itself.
The workshop emphasised that neurodiversity should be considered a key factor in both functional and non-functional requirements. Accessibility shouldn’t be an afterthought but rather an integral part of the entire design cycle.
Overcoming Barriers for Designers
Designers, however, face their own set of challenges when creating products for neurodiverse users.
One of the primary obstacles is accessing neurodiverse individuals for user research and testing. It can be difficult to recruit individuals with specific cognitive conditions for testing, meaning that designers often miss the opportunity to gather insights from the very people they are trying to serve.
Another challenge is the lack of design tools that effectively capture the needs and pain points of neurodiverse users.
While personas and user journeys are commonly used in UX design, they often fail to address the complexities of neurodiversity. Designers need more nuanced tools that can capture the full range of user experiences, including the emotional and cognitive factors that influence behavior.
Additionally, there is a lack of accountability at various levels of design governance. Making accessibility part of the functional and non-functional requirements of a project ensures that all members of a design team understand its importance.
Yet, in many cases, accessibility is still seen as a separate concern rather than an integral aspect of the overall user experience.
Finally, there’s a practical challenge: designers often lack the time to iterate on designs that are nuanced enough to be truly inclusive. Creating accessible, neurodiverse-friendly experiences requires ongoing testing, iteration, and refinement, which can be time-consuming and resource-intensive.
Key Takeaways for Designers
This Local Peoples workshop left participants with several key insights about how designers can better meet the needs of neurodiverse users:
- Embrace a Broader Perspective: Neurodiverse individuals represent a larger portion of the population than we often realize -particularly in the design community. Some people are open about their neurodiverse traits, while others may mask them. Designers should be mindful of this spectrum and create more inclusive spaces for those who may not feel comfortable revealing their neurodiversity.
- Question the Assumptions of “Neurotypical” Design: It’s important to challenge the assumption that “neurotypical” design is the default. In fact, many neurotypical traits might be learned behaviors rather than inherent characteristics. Understanding this can help designers build more inclusive experiences that benefit everyone, not just those with visible disabilities.
- Prioritise Inclusivity Over Templates: Inclusivity isn’t about ticking boxes or reusing existing templates -it requires thoughtful engagement with diverse user needs and iterative design that places the user at the center of the process.
Moving Forward: A Cultural Shift in Design
The Local Peoples meet-up – which is part of a regular series of meet-ups – made it clear that designing for neurodiversity isn’t just a technical challenge -it’s a cultural one.
Designers need to rethink how they approach inclusivity, move beyond statistical notions of “minority” users, and build experiences that cater to the full spectrum of human cognition.
This cultural shift will ensure that all users, neurodiverse or not, can engage with digital content in meaningful ways.
By embracing neurodiversity, designers not only improve the experience for those with cognitive differences but also create products that are more intuitive, efficient, and user-friendly for everyone.
With thanks to Local Peoples designer Nicole Lee for sharing her notes from this event.
