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Glossary

Terms used in accessibility research and practice. Each entry has a definition, common aliases, and category tags.

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Sampling Bias(also: Selection Bias, Participation Bias)
A systematic error in research caused by non-random selection of participants, resulting in a sample that does not accurately represent the target population. In accessibility research, sampling bias is a significant concern because recruitment methods may exclude people with…
Scoping Review(also: Scoping Study)
A scoping review is a type of research synthesis that systematically maps the existing literature on a broad topic to identify key concepts, gaps in evidence, and types of available research. Unlike systematic reviews that answer specific questions, scoping reviews chart the…
Score Prediction(also: Predicted grade, Comprehension self-prediction)
A subjective-response evaluation item in which a research participant, immediately after reading a passage and before learning their actual comprehension-question score, estimates the percentage of questions they will have answered correctly. Score prediction is used in…
Semantically Unpredictable Sentences(also: SUS, SUS Test)
A standardised method for evaluating speech intelligibility in which listeners are presented with sentences that are grammatically correct but semantically meaningless, such as "A polite art jumps beneath the arms" or "The law that finished shows the boots." Because the…
Semi-Automatic Wizard-of-Oz(also: Semi-Automatic WoZ)
A hybrid Wizard-of-Oz study methodology in which part of a prototype system is implemented with real automation while a human researcher (the 'wizard') intervenes only for components that are not yet reliable enough to run autonomously. For example, an AI agent may generate…
Semi-structured Interview(also: Semi-structured Interviewing)
A semi-structured interview is a qualitative research method in which the interviewer works from a guide of open-ended topics or questions but adapts the order, wording, and depth of probing to the flow of each conversation. It sits between a rigid structured interview (fixed…
Single Case Experimental Design(also: SCED, Single Subject Design, N-of-1 Design)
A research methodology in which individual participants serve as their own control, with repeated measurements taken during baseline and intervention phases to evaluate the effect of a treatment or intervention. This approach is particularly valuable in accessibility and…
Single-Case Study(also: Single-Subject Design, Single-Case Experimental Design, N-of-1 Study)
A research methodology in which an individual participant serves as their own control, with systematic measurement of behavior across different conditions such as baseline and intervention phases. The ABA design — where A represents baseline and B represents intervention — is a…
Single-Subject Case Study(also: Single-Case Design, N-of-1 Study, Single-Subject Research Design)
A single-subject case study is a research methodology that focuses on detailed observation and analysis of one individual (or a small number of individuals) over time, rather than comparing group averages. Widely used in brain injury rehabilitation and clinical practice, this…
Situated action(also: Situated cognition, Situated practice)
A theoretical framework from sociology and HCI holding that human actions and decisions are fundamentally shaped by the specific social, material, and temporal context in which they occur, rather than being pre-planned or rule-following. In explainable AI design, situated action…
Skin Conductance(also: SC, Skin Conductance Response, SCR)
A measure of the electrical conductance of the skin, which increases with sweat gland activity. Skin conductance is commonly used as an index of emotional arousal or sympathetic nervous system activation. In accessibility contexts, wearable sensors measuring skin conductance can…
Social Desirability Bias(also: Impression Management)
A type of response bias in which research participants answer questions in a way that presents themselves favorably rather than truthfully, either to project a positive self-image or to avoid judgment from the researcher. In accessibility research, social desirability bias can…
Social Desirability Bias(also: Impression Management)
A type of response bias where participants answer questions in a manner they believe will be viewed favorably by others rather than responding truthfully. In accessibility research contexts, this can manifest when participants with disabilities provide positive ratings to appear…
Socio-Gerontechnology
A theoretical framework, developed by Alexander Peine and Louis Neven, that analyses aging and technology as mutually constitutive: technologies do not simply serve pre-existing aging needs, and aging is not a pre-given biological fact — the two co-produce each other through…
Socio-Technical Aspirations
Individual- or community-driven ambition and desire to own or use a specific technology for personal benefit or societal acceptance or both. This concept, introduced by Sharma et al. (2020) as an extension to frameworks for assistive technology design, captures how technology…
Socio-Technical Grounded Theory(also: STGT)
Socio-Technical Grounded Theory (STGT) is a qualitative research methodology adapted from classical Grounded Theory for studying technology within its social and organisational context. It extends the original constant comparison and theoretical sampling principles of Grounded…
Speaking Behavior(also: Speaker Behavior, Speech Behavior)
In accessibility and HCI research, the observable communicative behaviors a speaker exhibits during conversation — including speech rate, voice intensity (loudness), articulation clarity (including hyperarticulation or over-enunciation), eye contact, gesturing, and pausing.…
Spearman correlation(also: Spearman rank correlation, Spearman's rho)
A non-parametric statistical measure of the strength and direction of the monotonic relationship between two ranked variables, ranging from -1 to +1. In accessibility evaluation research, Spearman correlation is used to assess how well automated metrics (such as Word Error Rate…
Stakeholder Research(also: Stakeholder Analysis, Stakeholder Involvement)
A research approach that identifies and engages all parties who have an interest in or are affected by a technology, product, or service. In accessibility research, stakeholder research involves consulting not just end users with disabilities but also family members, caregivers,…
Symbolic Interactionism(also: SI)
A sociological tradition, associated with Herbert Blumer and the Chicago School following George Herbert Mead, that understands social reality as constructed through ongoing interaction: people act toward things — including other people, technologies, and disability itself — on…
System Usability Scale(also: SUS)
A widely used 10-item Likert scale questionnaire developed by John Brooke in 1996 that provides a quick, reliable measure of perceived usability. Scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating better usability. The SUS has been validated across thousands of studies,…
System Usability Scale(also: SUS)
A widely used, standardized questionnaire consisting of 10 items that measures perceived usability of a system. Developed by John Brooke in 1986, SUS provides a "quick and dirty" reliable measure of usability. Each item uses a 5-point Likert scale, and the final score ranges…
Systematic Review(also: Systematic Literature Review)
A systematic review is a rigorous, reproducible synthesis of research on a narrowly-defined question, using a pre-registered protocol, exhaustive database search, explicit inclusion and exclusion criteria, independent dual screening, formal quality appraisal, and - where…

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