Advances in artificial intelligence (AI) hold transformative potential for humanitarian practice. Yet aligning this potential with the demands of humanitarian practice in dynamic and often resource-austere contexts remains a challenge. While research on Responsible AI provides high-level guidance, humanitarian practice demands nuanced approaches for which human-computer interaction (HCI) can provide a strong foundation. However, existing literature lacks a comprehensive examination of how HCI principles can inform responsible AI adoption in humanitarian practice. To address this gap, we conducted a reflexive thematic analysis of 34 interviews with AI technology experts, humanitarian practitioners, and humanitarian policy developers. Our contributions are twofold. First, we empirically identify three cross-cutting themes—AI risks in humanitarian practice, organisational readiness, and collaboration—that highlight common tensions in adopting AI for humanitarian practice. Second, by analysing their interconnectivities, we reveal intertwined obstacles and propose a conceptual HCI-informed framework.

Digital inclusion is essential for attaining the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals and for ensuring no one is left behind. In low-and-middle countries (LMICs), people lack the digital skills to access good-quality employment opportunities. It has been shown in other contexts that scaffolding the learning of digital skills can enhance people’s attainment of digital skills; specifically, these interventions target increasing the zones of actual development and independent action. However, to date, fewer studies have looked specifically at the role of digital skills training via smartphones for blind and partially sighted and deaf and hard-of-hearing people in LMICs. We conducted classroom-based training and peer learning through WhatsApp groups for 138 people in India and Kenya. Our findings emphasize the role of inclusive scaffolding and instructional and community-based peer learning. As such, we present a new digital scaffolding framework for inclusive instructional and peer learning, extending Vygotsky’s Scaffolding Theory.

In a world where diversity is increasingly recognised and celebrated, it is important for HCI to embrace the evolving methods and theories for technologies to reflect the diversity of its users and be ability-centric. Interdependence Theory, an example of this evolution, highlights the interpersonal relationships between humans and technologies and how technologies should be designed to meet shared goals and outcomes for people, regardless of their abilities. This necessitates a contemporary understanding of "ability-diverse collaboration," which motivated this review. In this review, we offer an analysis of 117 papers sourced from the ACM Digital Library spanning the last two decades. We contribute (1) a unified taxonomy and the Ability-Diverse Collaboration Framework, (2) a reflective discussion and mapping of the current design space, and (3) future research opportunities and challenges. Finally, we have released our data and analysis tool to encourage the HCI research community to contribute to this ongoing effort.

While audio-based interfaces make information accessible to people with visual impairments, some information, such as diagrams, graphs, and charts, can be better interpreted tactilely. We introduce a new Passive Refreshable Tactile (PRET) Printer concept. Using off-the-shelf components of a laser engraver and the nascent Tacilia technology, the prototype enables the creation of refreshable tactile graphics. By leveraging Pixel Art as a rendering process, we enhance the diversity of image production on this medium. We contribute technical specifications, open-source files to make the PRET printer and a qualitative evaluation of the concept by tactile learners. The prototype facilitates rapid and cost-effective development of refreshable tactile media, crucial for improving comprehension. The work builds upon existing research, furthering the groundwork to address the needs of tactile learners worldwide and establishing a foundation for further innovation and development in this domain.

Two-dimensional pin array displays enable access to tactile graphics that are important for the education of students with visual impairments. Due to their prohibitive cost and limited access, there is limited research within HCI and the rules to design graphics on these low-resolution tactile displays are unclear. In this paper, eight tactile readers with visual impairments qualitatively evaluate the implementation of Pixel Art to create tactile graphical primitives on a pin array display. Every pin of the pin array is assumed to be a pixel on a pixel grid. Our findings suggest that Pixel Art tactile graphics on a pin array are clear and comprehensible to tactile readers, positively confirming its use to design basic tactile shapes and line segments. The guidelines provide a consistent framework to create tactile media which implies that they can be used to downsize basic shapes for refreshable pin-array displays.

Refreshable tactile displays based on pin array technologies have a significant impact on the education of children with visual impairments, but they are prohibitively expensive. To better understand their design and the reason for the high cost, we created a database and analyzed the product architectures of 67 unique pin array technologies from literature and patents. We qualitatively coded their functional elements and analyzed the physical parts that execute the functions. Our findings highlight that pin array surfaces aim to achieve three key functions, i.e., raise and lower pins, lock pins, and create a large array. We also contribute a concise morphological chart that organises the various mechanisms for these three functions. Based on this, we discuss the reasons for the high cost and complexity of these surface haptic technologies and infer why larger displays and more affordable devices are not available. Our findings can be used to design new mechanisms for more affordable and scalable pin array display systems.