calvin-lau-sig7
commented
3 days ago To detect, we can:
- find acronyms by scanning website for 2 or more capitalised letters adjacent to one another
- for abbreviations we could possibly, we could possibly make a dictionary scan on the website
To assess, we'll need to:
- review results on a spreadsheet
To resolve, we can:
- ensure acronyms and abbreviations are explained in first instance
- removed if it does not serve a useful purpose
selfthinker
This issue is from the accessibility audit of the Design System website by DAC in July 2024.
DAC's description
The abbreviation 'GDS' was present throughout the page which was not conveyed in its expanded form when it was first used. This could be problematic for some users who may not be familiar with the meaning of the acronym.
Current code
Cognitive user comments
“At the bottom of the page the acronym ‘GDS’ is used without an explanation on the page. I would not expect a user to understand any acronym immediately as different services and industries may use the same acronym to mean different things. This can lead to confusion, or mistakes being made if a user assumes the acronym may stand for something else. Those with short term memory loss will also have trouble remembering acronyms.”
DAC's proposed solution
Ensure that all acronyms and abbreviations are expanded upon in the first instance to ensure that all users can understand what they represent. Using the expanded state of the of the abbreviation will ensure that users can clearly determine what they are accessing; this is particularly important for users who may experience cognitive difficulties. For more information, please refer to Technique G102: Providing the expansion or explanation of an abbreviation.
Thoughts about the solution
While it's generally a good idea to expand abbreviations and acronyms, in this particular case ("GDS") it might be fair to argue the need for fixing it depends on how well our target audience knows it. I'd propose to only fix those acronyms that we think would otherwise be confusing for our target audience.
Additional instances
DAC's report mentions additional instances in the Accessibility strategy.
As this can potentially happen on any page, this work should include checking all the other pages for other uses of abbreviations. It might be worth making two different cards for this: One for checking and recording all instances, the other for fixing them.
To save time, it makes sense to audit all the body copy issues together:
4010
4013
4023
4024
4025
Needed roles
Content designer