11 Disability Personas

Accessibility Beyond Checklists

Axe checks rules. CBrowser simulates real users.

11 disability personas. Mobile device testing. Perceptual transport scoring. The gap between WCAG compliance and real-world use.

WCAG Compliance Does Not Equal Accessibility

You pass every axe scan. Your Lighthouse score is 98. But users with motor tremors still cannot finish checkout. Here is why.

Rule Checkers Miss Real-World Barriers

Axe says your button has an aria-label. It cannot tell you a user with tremors needs 3 tries to hit it. Rules check markup. CBrowser simulates behavior.

Mobile Touch Targets Need Device Emulation

A 38px button passes desktop testing. On an iPhone 15, it fails WCAG 2.5.8. Without real device viewports, you test the wrong surface.

Viewport vs Full-Page Gives Different Results

Above-the-fold might be perfect. Scroll down and the footer has 2:1 contrast links. Scope controls whether you get a landing page score or a full audit score.

11 Disability Personas

Seven disability personas simulate real physical and cognitive barriers. Four general personas cover behavior patterns that make those barriers worse.

Motor TremorDisability

Hand tremors, reduced click precision, needs larger tap targets

motor-impairment-tremor

Low VisionDisability

Uses screen magnification, reduced visual field, needs high contrast

low-vision-magnified

Cognitive ADHDDisability

Attention challenges, easily distracted, needs clear layout

cognitive-adhd

DyslexicDisability

Difficulty processing text, needs clear fonts and spacing

dyslexic-user

Deaf / Hard of HearingDisability

No audio input, needs captions and visual alternatives

deaf-user

Elderly Low VisionDisability

Age-related vision loss, slower processing, cautious interaction

elderly-low-vision

Color Blind (Deuteranopia)Disability

Red-green color blindness, needs non-color cues

color-blind-deuteranopia

Cautious First-TimerGeneral

Low tech confidence, high anxiety, needs clear guidance

cautious-first-timer

Impatient Power UserGeneral

Low patience, fast processing, expects quick workflows

impatient-power-user

Analytical ResearcherGeneral

High info need, thorough, reads everything before acting

analytical-researcher

Mobile MultitaskerGeneral

Distracted, on-the-go, needs scannable content and large targets

mobile-multitasker

Mobile WCAG Testing

New

Pass device="mobile" to test with real mobile viewport sizes. Touch targets, responsive layouts, and viewport-specific barriers behave differently on phones.

Touch Target Validation

WCAG 2.5.8 requires 44x44px minimum. Mobile viewports expose small targets that pass on desktop.

Responsive Layout Barriers

Hamburger menus, stacked layouts, and content reflow create barriers you cannot see on desktop.

Device Presets

Test with generic "mobile" or pick a device: iPhone 15, Pixel 7, iPad. Each uses real viewport sizes.

empathy_audit(
  url: "https://example.com/checkout",
  goal: "complete purchase",
  disabilities: ["motor-impairment-tremor"],
  device: "iPhone 15",
  scope: "full_page",
  wcagLevel: "AA"
)

Scope Control

Two modes for two different questions. Use both for the full picture.

viewport

Above-the-fold only

Tests only what users see on first load without scrolling. Best for landing pages and first impressions.

Use when: Improving conversion pages, testing hero sections, measuring initial attention.

full_page

Scroll entire page

Scrolls through the entire page, testing every element. Required for WCAG audits where every element must pass.

Use when: Running compliance audits, pre-launch reviews, or checking legal requirements.

Perceptual Transport Scoring

Standard accessibility testing checks whether elements exist. Perceptual transport measures how much information each persona actually loses when viewing your page.

How It Works

CBrowser captures your page, then applies persona-specific visual filters. Blur for low vision. Color shifts for color blindness. Contrast reduction for elderly users.

It computes the Wasserstein distance (optimal transport) between the original and filtered views. This gives one number measuring actual information loss, not just rule violations.

A motor-impaired user might see 100% of visual info but face 100% motor cost. A color-blind user loses 1.1% of visual info but has 0% motor cost. Same page, totally different accessibility profiles.

Example Output

Each audit returns barriers with WCAG references, severity levels, specific elements, and step-by-step fix instructions.

{
  "persona": "motor-impairment-tremor",
  "url": "https://example.com/checkout",
  "device": "mobile",
  "scope": "full_page",
  "empathy_score": 31,
  "barriers": [
    {
      "severity": "critical",
      "element": "button.submit-order",
      "wcag": "2.5.8 Target Size",
      "issue": "Touch target 32x28px, minimum 44x44px",
      "impact": "Motor-impaired users miss tap on 67% of attempts",
      "fix": "Add padding: min-height 44px, min-width 44px"
    },
    {
      "severity": "high",
      "element": "input.promo-code",
      "wcag": "2.5.5 Target Size (Enhanced)",
      "issue": "Input field 36px height on mobile viewport",
      "impact": "Repeated failed taps cause frustration spiral",
      "fix": "Set min-height: 44px on all form inputs"
    }
  ],
  "wcag_violations": [
    { "criterion": "1.4.3", "level": "AA", "count": 3 },
    { "criterion": "2.5.8", "level": "AA", "count": 7 }
  ],
  "perceptual_transport": {
    "information_loss": "0%",
    "motor_cost": "100%",
    "cognitive_load": "30%",
    "wasserstein_distance": 0.0
  }
}

Tools Used

empathy_audit

Simulates a disability persona using your site. Returns barriers, WCAG violations, and an empathy score from 0 to 100.

agent_ready_audit

Grades your site on structural access: ARIA labels, semantic HTML, keyboard navigation, and machine readability.

attention_analysis

Creates attention heatmaps showing where each persona actually looks vs. where key content sits.

Audit Your Site With Real Personas

Run an empathy audit with a motor-tremor persona on mobile. See barriers that axe scans cannot detect.

Audit Your Site

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All 120 Tools

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Viewport-only analysis
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11 disability personas

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