Website Accessibility for the Blind: A Study of E-Health Providers Under the Lens of Corporate Social Responsibility

Abstract

On September 5, 2006, a legal precedent was set for web accessibility in the U.S. Federal judge Marilyn Patel sustained discrimination claims by the National Federation for the Blind against Target Corporation, one of America’s largest retailers. She established that websites must be fully accessible to the blind under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Past research has indicated that organizations doing business on the Web have largely ignored W3C guidelines for making their sites accessible. This study examines web accessibility of e-health providers under the lens of Corporate Social Responsibility. A model is developed linking accessibility behavior to a provider’s propensity to engage in CSR activities, the types of medical services offered, complexity of visual web content, and perceived threat of litigation resulting from an inaccessible site. Fifteen websites of eHealth providers were analyzed using IBM’s aDesigner accessibility tool for the six years before and two years since the commencement of the Target litigation. Results suggest that accessibility of sites has showed significant improvement since the Target case began. A comparison with a benchmark group of companies with a reputation for corporate social responsibility revealed marked differences between the eHealth providers and the top CSR companies.