The use of digital talking books by people with print disabilities: a literature review

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to analyse empirical studies regarding the use of digital talking books (DAISY books) as well as the possibilities and limitations that users with print disabilities encounter when using these books. Upon fulfilment of this purpose, it is also possible to identify research needs in the area of talking books. Design/methodology/approach: An analysis of 12 empirical studies concerning the use of DAISY books is conducted. The concept of affordances is employed in the analysis, which focuses on 1) users of talking books, 2) talking books as objects, and 3) the social settings in which talking books are used. Findings: First, the reviewed literature indicates that the navigational features of the DAISY talking book appear to provide unprecedented affordances in terms of the users’ approaches to reading. However, the affordances of talking books depend, to some extent, on whether the users have visual impairments or dyslexia/reading and writing difficulties. Second, the reviewed literature illustrates that the affordances provided by talking books depend on the settings in which they are used, both in terms of specific social situations and wider sociopolitical contexts. Originality/value: Although the need for assistive reading technologies, such as digital talking books, is large, research in this area is scarce, particularly from a user perspective. This article describes the results of those studies which have actually been conducted on this topic and highlights areas that require further study. Post-print of article appearing in Library Hi Tech 33(1), pp. 54-64 http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/LHT-07-2014-0074 Please cite the published version of the article