# Communicating Visualizations without Visuals: Investigation of Visualization Alternative Text for People with Visual Impairments

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2108.03657 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2108.03657/

## Key facts

- Cited by 4 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 8 Aug 2021.

## Built on by (most cited first, 4 of 4)

- [VisText: A Benchmark for Semantically Rich Chart Captioning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2307.05356/) (2023)
- [AltChart: Enhancing VLM-based Chart Summarization Through Multi-Pretext Tasks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2405.13580/) (2024)
- [Finding the Signal in the Noise: An Exploratory Study on Assessing the Effectiveness of AI and Accessibility Forums for Blind Users' Support Needs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2602.18623/) (2026)
- [Skeleton: Visual Authoring of Non-visual Data Experiences](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2607.14579/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Alternative text is critical in communicating graphics to people who are blind or have low vision. Especially for graphics that contain rich information, such as visualizations, poorly written or an absence of alternative texts can worsen the information access inequality for people with visual impairments. In this work, we consolidate existing guidelines and survey current practices to inspect to what extent current practices and recommendations are aligned. Then, to gain more insight into what people want in visualization alternative texts, we interviewed 22 people with visual impairments regarding their experience with visualizations and their information needs in alternative texts. The study findings suggest that participants actively try to construct an image of visualizations in their head while listening to alternative texts and wish to carry out visualization tasks (e.g., retrieve specific values) as sighted viewers would. The study also provides ample support for the need to reference the underlying data instead of visual elements to reduce users' cognitive burden. Informed by the study, we provide a set of recommendations to compose an informative alternative text.