Web site accessibility evaluation methods in action: A comparative approach for ministerial web sites in Iran
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide knowledge about methods used to evaluate the accessibility of Iranian web sites through a real research environment.
Design/methodology/approach
The main theoretical base of this article is that almost all research conducted to evaluate the accessibility of web sites has used only one of three methods (namely manual, automatic and users' experiences). However, it seems that using a combination of these three methods is actually necessary. Consequently, taking a critical approach this article examines 18 Iranian ministerial web sites using the three methods.
Findings
Findings in both documents and evaluative studies show that each of the methods has deficits and it is necessary to employ a combination of the methods in order to conduct a reliable accessibility assessment. The different rankings of ministerial web sites in various evaluations have confirmed this view.
Originality/value
Identifying the advantages and disadvantages of the three methods and employing them in real research environments to assess the accessibility of ministerial web sites has been a useful exercise. The work can not only be a starting point for further discussions on the reliability of accessibility evaluation methods, but can also be applied to other types of web site.
Keywords
Citation
Hassanzadeh, M. and Navidi, F. (2010), "Web site accessibility evaluation methods in action: A comparative approach for ministerial web sites in Iran", The Electronic Library, Vol. 28 No. 6, pp. 789-803. https://doi.org/10.1108/02640471011093499
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2010, Emerald Group Publishing Limited