Colour Vision Deficiencies in the Digital Age: A Survey of User Experiences with Digital Displays

Abstract

Introduction: Approximately 90% of dichromats and 67% of anomalous trichromats experience difficulty performing colour-related tasks daily (Steward & Cole, 1989). As technology becomes more prevalent, examining whether this condition impacts their use of digital displays is increasingly essential. Limited studies analyze the relationship between colour vision deficiencies (CVD) and digital displays. Mashige (2019) found that 63.2% of schoolchildren with CVD reported challenges when “working with computers,” suggesting that this condition may have some effect. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the impact that congenital red-green CVD has on an individual’s interaction with digital displays in different areas of their daily life, such as “school,” “work/volunteering,” “gaming and eSports,” “driving/motorized vehicle,” and “travelling.” Materials and Method: An online survey was administered to people with CVD from Canada and the United States of America (USA). In addition to collecting demographic information and awareness of their CVD, information regarding difficulties carrying out colour-related tasks was collected. Because several software and filter options may improve performance on colour-related tasks, we asked whether they tried any and to rate their effectiveness. Results: A total of 381 individuals with CVD (280 males) completed the survey. Nearly 100% reported some difficulty with one of the tasks in most areas of life, individually, except for travelling (54.1%). For most tasks, there were no significant differences in the rankings based on sex and/or age group. Still, some tasks showed significant differences based on severity, primarily between mild and severe defects. Some examples included “colour-coded diagrams” at school, work/volunteering, and recreation/hobbies; “editing photos or other coloured images” at school, recreation/hobbies, and social media; and “reading coloured letters on various backgrounds” in gaming/eSports, online shopping/banking, and in-person shopping/banking. Nearly 65% of respondents reported making changes or implementing modifications to their displays, but there were 35% who did not. The most popular aid was “trial-and-error adjustments” of the colour and brightness of the display. Of the individuals who tried an aid, approximately 90% reported a modification to be at least a little effective, less than 3% reported at least one aid as ineffective, and only 25% rated the modifications as highly effective. There was no significant difference based on sex, age group, or severity for most modifications, except for passive aids (“coloured filters”) where youth found them more effective than adults. “Desktops/laptops,” “cell phones,” and “tablets” were the displays that people with CVD most frequently encountered difficulty and modified. The displays showed significant association with age group for some areas of life (work/volunteering, recreation/hobbies, gaming & eSports, and online shopping/banking) and modifications. This was probably due to the greater use of displays or differences in content, with youth having more problems with tablets and adults more with cell phones. Conclusion: Most respondents encountered some difficulty with at least one task, indicating that CVD had some effect on their ability to use digital displays. Although most respondents have tried some modifications to their displays, some respondents reported that at least one modification was ineffective and only 25% found an aid to be highly effective. Software developers should focus on making aids more accommodating and customizable to individual preferences.