Glossary

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Clock Position(also: Clock face position, Clock orientation)

A method of conveying direction to a person who is blind by mapping the 12-hour clock face onto the user's immediate surroundings, where 12 o'clock is directly ahead, 3 o'clock is to the right, 6 o'clock is behind, and 9 o'clock is to the left. Clock-position directions (e.g.,…

Clock Technique(also: Clock Method, Clock Face Direction System)

An orientation method used in mobility training for blind and visually impaired people in which directions are communicated using the positions on an analogue clock face. The user imagines standing at the centre of a clock with 12 o'clock directly ahead, 3 o'clock to the right,…

Clock-Based Directional Audio(also: Clock-Face Audio Cueing, Clock Position Audio)

A spatial orientation system that communicates direction to users by referencing positions on a clock face (e.g., "3 o'clock" for right, "12 o'clock" for directly ahead), often combined with distance estimates. In accessible VR and gaming contexts, clock-based directional audio…

Close Reading

A qualitative analytic method in which researchers slowly and attentively examine a text, image, or artifact, documenting observable features and interpretive responses in detail. In accessibility research, close reading is used to surface patterns in artifacts such as alt text,…

Closed Captioning(also: CC, Closed Captions)

Text displayed on screen that represents dialogue, sound effects, music, and other audio information in video content, which viewers can toggle on or off. Unlike open captions, closed captions are a separate data stream that can be enabled or disabled by the viewer. Closed…

Closed Captioning(also: CC, Closed Captions)

Text displayed on a screen that transcribes spoken dialogue, identifies speakers, and describes relevant sound effects in video content. Unlike open captions which are permanently embedded in the video, closed captions can be toggled on or off by the viewer. Closed captioning is…

Closed Captions(also: CC)

Captions that can be turned on or off by the viewer, as opposed to open captions which are permanently embedded in the video. Closed captions typically include not just dialogue but also descriptions of relevant non-speech audio like music, sound effects, and speaker…

Closed Interpreting(also: Closed Sign Language Interpreting)

A proposed accessibility feature for video content where a sign language interpreter video can be toggled on or off and displayed alongside the main video, analogous to closed captions for text. Unlike embedded "open" interpreters that are permanently part of the video, closed…

Closed-Loop Adaptation(also: Closed-Loop System, Adaptive Loop)

A system design approach where real-time feedback from sensors or user behavior is continuously monitored and used to automatically adjust the system's response. In accessibility technology, closed-loop adaptation enables interfaces to respond dynamically to users' physiological…

Closed-Loop Control(also: Feedback Control)

A control strategy in which a system continuously measures the current state, compares it to a desired reference, and adjusts its output to minimize the error. Contrasted with open-loop control, which acts without sensing outcomes. In assistive wearables, closed-loop control is…

Closed-loop Interaction(also: Closed-Loop Feedback, Perform-Assess-Adjust Cycle)

An interaction pattern in which a system continuously observes the user's action, evaluates it, and returns immediate feedback that shapes the next attempt, producing an iterative perform-assess-adjust cycle. Closed-loop interaction contrasts with open-loop designs that present…

Cloud Accessibility(also: Cloud-Based Accessibility)

The use of cloud computing technologies to deliver, manage, and personalize accessibility features and assistive technologies. Cloud accessibility enables users to store their accessibility preferences remotely and have them applied automatically to any device or platform they…

Cloud-Based Assistive Technology(also: Assistive Technology as a Service, ATaaS, Cloud AT)

An approach to delivering assistive technology through cloud computing, where personalised accessibility software configurations, preferences, and tools are stored remotely and delivered on demand to any device via the internet. This model addresses the portability problem:…

Cloze Test(also: Cloze Procedure, Cloze Deletion Test)

A reading comprehension assessment method in which words are systematically deleted from a text and the reader must fill in the missing words based on context. Developed by Wilson Taylor in 1953, cloze tests measure how well a reader understands the language patterns and meaning…

Clue and Reasoning Prompting(also: CARP, Clue-and-Reasoning Prompting)

A prompt engineering strategy for large language models that instructs the model to first identify textual clues (keywords, phrases, contextual information) in the input and then perform diagnostic reasoning based on those clues before producing a classification output.…

Clustering Algorithm(also: Cluster Analysis, Unsupervised Clustering, K-means)

A clustering algorithm is an unsupervised machine-learning technique that groups similar data points together based on a distance or similarity measure, without needing pre-labelled training data. Common algorithms include K-means, PAM (Partitioning Around Medoids), CLARA…

Clutching(also: Clutch Mechanism, Clutch Gesture)

In gesture- and motion-based input systems, a mechanism that lets the user temporarily disengage the recogniser so that everyday, non-communicative movements — reaching, adjusting posture, gesturing socially — do not trigger false activations. Named after the mechanical clutch…

Co-Adaptive Design(also: Co-Adaptive Interaction, Mutual Adaptation)

A design approach where both the technology and its users adapt to each other over time through ongoing interaction. Rather than designing a fixed system that users must learn to operate, co-adaptive design creates flexible tools that evolve through use as users develop personal…

Co-Authorship(also: Co-authoring, AI Co-Authorship)

In AI-mediated writing and communication, the shared production of text between a human user and an AI system, where neither party fully owns the resulting output. Co-authorship raises questions about credit, intent, authenticity, and accountability, and these become especially…

Co-Creative(also: Co-Creativity, Co-Creative AI)

A framing of human-AI collaboration in which the AI acts as a creative partner rather than a tool or a replacement — contributing ideas, drafts, or alternatives that the human writer, artist, or designer evaluates, accepts, rejects, or revises. Co-creative systems typically…

Co-Cultural Theory(also: Co-Cultural Communication Theory)

A communication theory developed by Mark Orbe that examines how members of marginalized or underrepresented groups communicate within dominant societal structures. The theory identifies the Deaf community as a subordinate group within a hearing-dominated society and analyzes how…

Co-Design(also: Participatory Design, Co-Creation)

A design methodology that actively involves end users, stakeholders, and domain experts as equal partners throughout the design process. In accessibility, co-design ensures that the people who will use assistive technologies or accessible products have meaningful input into…

Co-Design(also: Co-creation, Cooperative Design)

Co-design is a collaborative design approach that actively involves all stakeholders — including end users, domain experts, and designers — as equal partners in the design process. In accessibility work, co-design ensures that people with disabilities and the professionals who…

Co-Embodiment(also: Shared Embodiment, Collaborative Embodiment)

A design concept where multiple users jointly control or inhabit a single virtual body or avatar, each contributing different aspects of the character's movements or actions. In CoSignPlay, co-embodiment allows one player to control non-manual signs (facial expressions, head…

Co-Located Collaboration(also: Co-Located Cooperation)

Co-located collaboration is the shared activity of people working or playing together while physically present in the same space, as distinct from remote or distributed collaboration. In HCI and accessibility research, co-located collaboration is studied because it adds embodied…

Co-Making(also: Co-Fabrication, Collaborative Making)

Co-making is a participatory practice in which people with disabilities work directly with collaborators — researchers, AI assistants, peers, or family members — to build physical assistive technology together, rather than being passive recipients of devices designed and…

Co-Pilot Mode(also: Copilot Mode, Xbox Copilot)

Co-Pilot Mode is an accessibility feature, introduced by Microsoft on Xbox in 2017 and since adopted elsewhere, that lets two controllers be combined so they act as a single logical controller driving the same in-game player. The feature was created primarily for disabled…

Co-Presence(also: Copresence)

The sense of being together with another person in a shared space, whether physical or virtual, where individuals are aware of each other's presence and are "accessible, available, and subject to one another" (Goffman). Co-presence does not require active interaction—the mere…

Co-Regulation(also: Coregulation)

Co-regulation is the process by which one person helps another manage their emotional or physiological state, through presence, calming behaviours, modelling coping strategies, or environmental adjustment. It is well established in developmental psychology (parent helping a…

Co-Researcher(also: Community Co-Researcher, Peer Researcher)

A person with lived experience of disability who contributes to research not merely as a participant or informant but as an active member of the research team, involved in planning, data collection, analysis, and co-authoring outputs. The co-researcher role goes beyond co-design…

Co-contraction(also: Unintended Co-contraction, Muscle Co-activation)

The simultaneous activation of antagonistic muscles — for example, the biceps and triceps firing at the same time. Some co-contraction is normal and useful for joint stability, but involuntary or excessive co-contraction is common in conditions such as spasticity, cerebral…

Co-creation workshop(also: Co-creation session, Co-design workshop)

A structured collaborative session in which researchers, designers, and participants (including end users) work together to generate ideas, explore concepts, and shape the design of products, services, or research. In accessibility contexts, co-creation workshops are valued for…

Co-design(also: Co-creation, Cooperative design)

A design methodology that actively involves end users, stakeholders, and communities as equal partners throughout the design process, going beyond consultation to shared decision-making and creative collaboration. In accessibility and disability research, co-design is valued for…

Co-design(also: Co-creation, Cooperative Design)

A design methodology where end users actively participate as partners throughout the design process, contributing their expertise and lived experience to shape solutions. In co-design, researchers and participants collaboratively create design artifacts, validate concepts, and…

Co-morbidity(also: Comorbidity, Co-occurring Conditions, Multiple Disabilities)

The simultaneous presence of two or more medical conditions or disabilities in a single individual. In accessibility contexts, co-morbidity is a critical design consideration because many users, particularly older adults, experience multiple impairments simultaneously — for…

Coarticulation

A linguistic phenomenon in sign language where the production of one sign influences the physical form of adjacent signs in continuous signing. For example, the ending hand position or handshape of one sign may affect the starting position or handshape of the next sign.…

Cochlear Implant(also: CI)

A surgically implanted electronic device that provides a sense of sound to individuals who are severely deaf or hard of hearing. Unlike hearing aids that amplify sound, cochlear implants bypass damaged portions of the ear and directly stimulate the auditory nerve. Users still…

Cochlear Implant(also: CI)

A surgically implanted electronic device that provides a sense of sound to individuals who are deaf or have severe hearing loss. Unlike hearing aids which amplify sound, cochlear implants bypass damaged portions of the inner ear and directly stimulate the auditory nerve. The…

Cochlear implant(also: CI, Bionic ear)

A surgically implanted electronic device that provides a sense of sound to a person with severe to profound sensorineural hearing loss by directly stimulating the auditory nerve, bypassing damaged hair cells in the cochlea. Unlike hearing aids, which amplify sound, cochlear…

Cocktail Party Effect(also: Selective Auditory Attention)

The human ability to focus auditory attention on a single speaker or sound source while filtering out competing background noise or other simultaneous conversations. Named after the experience of following one conversation at a noisy party, this perceptual phenomenon has been…

Cocktail Party Effect

The human ability to focus auditory attention on a single speaker or sound source while filtering out competing voices and background noise. Named after the experience of following one conversation at a noisy party, this perceptual phenomenon demonstrates that the auditory…

Cocktail party effect(also: Selective auditory attention)

The well-documented human ability to focus auditory attention on a single speech source among multiple simultaneous conversations, while still detecting relevant information (such as one's name) in unattended streams. The cocktail party effect is foundational to the design of…

Code Accessibility(also: Programming Accessibility, Accessible Coding)

The practice of making programming environments, source code, and software development tools usable by people with disabilities, particularly those with visual impairments. Code accessibility encompasses accessible IDEs and text editors, aural or tactile representations of code…

Code Editor(also: Source Code Editor, Text Editor)

A software application designed specifically for editing source code, offering features like syntax highlighting, code completion, bracket matching, and indentation management. Code editors range from lightweight tools like Notepad++ and Vim to full-featured editors like Visual…

Code Folding(also: Code Collapsing, Outlining)

Code folding is a feature in text editors and integrated development environments (IDEs) that allows programmers to collapse sections of code (such as functions, classes, or loops) into a single line, hiding the detailed content while retaining a high-level structural overview.…

Code Jumper(also: Project Torino)

An accessible physical programming toolkit originally developed by Microsoft Research (under the name Project Torino) that uses tangible pods connected by cables to teach programming concepts to children with visual impairments. Each pod represents a programming construct such…

Code Literacy(also: Coding Literacy, Programming Literacy)

The ability to read, write, and understand computer code, increasingly recognized as a fundamental skill for education and employment in the digital economy. In accessibility contexts, code literacy education faces significant barriers for people who are blind or have low vision…

Code Navigation(also: Code Browsing, Codebase Navigation)

Code navigation refers to the process of moving through, understanding, and locating specific elements within a software codebase. For sighted developers, this is supported by visual cues such as syntax highlighting, indentation, code folding, and spatial layout. For blind…

Code Review(also: Peer Code Review)

A software quality assurance practice in which one or more developers systematically examine source code written by a colleague, looking for bugs, design issues, readability problems, and adherence to coding standards. Code reviews can be asynchronous (reviewing pull requests)…

Code Smell(also: Code Anti-Pattern)

A characteristic in source code that indicates a potential deeper problem, even if the code technically functions correctly. In accessibility contexts, code smells include patterns like using div or span elements instead of semantic HTML (buttons, headings, nav), inline styles…