Mobile Phone Technology for ALL: Towards Reducing the Digital Divide

Use of cell phones has grown dramatically. By the turn of this century, cell phone use had reached a majority of the populations in Canada, the United States, Australia, Germany, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and Italy. However, a digital divide exists between people with and without disabilities in their use of mobile phones. Gaps in usage occur across all age groups. In a study by Bryen, Carey and Potts (2007), only 20% of adults with significant communication disabilities used cell phones. Yet, the need for cell phones has been expressed more than a decade ago to improve health and safety; manage transportation; and communicate with employers, friends, and families (Bryen & Pecunas, 2004). Similar needs have been expressed by adults with intellectual disabilities (Bryen, Carey & Friedman, 2007). Given the expanding capabilities of mobile phones for communication, access to information, commerce, entertainment, and health and safety, without access to those technologies people with intellectual and those with communication disabilities will be further isolated and marginalized in society. Consequently, the promise of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) will not be realized. In this article mobile phone technology includes cell phones and smartphones that enable individuals with and without disabilities to communicate and access information. Cell phones are portable telephones that use wireless cellular technology to send and receive phone signals. An outgrowth of cellular technology is smart phones or smartphones. According to Phone Scoop (2014) a smartphone, is “a category of mobile device that provides advanced capabilities beyond a typical mobile phone. Smartphones run complete operating system (OS) software that provides a standardized interface and platform for application developers. Most smartphones contain features such as calendars, media players, GPS navigation, web browsing, Wi-Fi, and third party applications and accessories. Digital divide is defined as the gap between those with regular, effective access and ability to use digital technologies and those without (Boyera, 2004). The digital divide is a social issue, given that the divide is based on age, education, race, household income, and disability status (Feingold, 2013; Jackson, Kolenic, Fitzgerald, Harold, & Von Eye, 2008; and Zickuhr & Smith, 2012). Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) is an umbrella term that encompasses the communication methods used to supplement or replace speech or writing for those with impairments in the production or comprehension of spoken or written language (Wikipedia, 2014). For the purpose of this article, we have focused primarily on speech generating devices. United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) is an international human rights and development treaty to Diane Nelson Bryen Temple University, USA & University of Pretoria, South Africa