Digital Outcasts

Digital Outcasts: Moving Technology Forward without Leaving People Behind, Second Edition comprehensively explores inclusive design in human-computer interaction. The book examines the real-life experiences of people with disabilities as they navigate systemic barriers in employment, education, healthcare, and social connectivity. This new edition covers the intersectionality of disability with other forms of economic and political discrimination, uncovering how biases related to race, gender, and ability are reflected in language models and AI algorithms. With digital access a foundational element of human existence, the consequences of exclusion are far-reaching and increasingly urgent.

Citing case studies in law, creative arts, and social science, this updated edition also examines the historical and emergent impact people with disabilities have on culture and industry. Digital Outcasts emphases that disability has long served as a powerful catalyst for design innovation, driving transformational benefit for consumers of all abilities and backgrounds. Taking into account new legal and technological perspectives, this revision stands as an update on the progress we have made—and how far we have yet to go.