The Cognitive and Learning Disabilities Accessibility Task Force (COGA) is a W3C initiative whose goal is to help digital creators produce content that’s clear and easy to use, particularly for people with cognitive and learning disabilities. Simply put, they’re the folks trying to ensure nobody needs a PhD to fill out an online form.
As a Senior Accessibility Engineer with a background in psychology, I've always been fascinated by human behavior—why people do what they do (including why they occasionally throw their keyboards out the window). Blending the science of human behavior (UX) with software engineering through digital accessibility just made sense to me, so that’s what I’ve been doing since 2001.
Being professionally immersed in psychology, UX, and web accessibility standards brought me into the cognitive accessibility orbit. In this post, I’d like to share some of what I've learned so designers, engineers, researchers, and others can keep these considerations in mind when designing inclusive experiences.
Why Cognitive Accessibility Matters
When most people think about web accessibility, they focus on what they can see or touch: screen readers, keyboard navigation, color contrast. And while these are vitally important considerations, cognitive accessibility—how people process, understand, and emotionally interact with digital experiences—sometimes gets overshadowed.
Many digital products are built around the assumption that everyone thinks in similar ways. My background in psychology—along with casual observation and articles on neat things like the prevalence of mental monologues—have taught me that’s simply not true. People have distinct cognitive patterns, ways of interpreting information, and thresholds for cognitive load. That’s why an interface or design that feels intuitive to one person might be confusing or overwhelming for someone else.
Think about an overly complicated form with unclear labels or navigation menus that shift from page to page. These might seem like minor inconveniences, but for someone experiencing cognitive strain, they block the ability to complete necessary tasks. These cognitive accessibility barriers are not always immediately visible, but their repercussions impact most of us. Consider:
- About a third of US adolescents and adults will experience an anxiety disorder at some point in their lives. What happens when an overwhelmed college student abandons care because their therapist’s telehealth portal is too confusing to access?
- Nearly a third of Veterans have some form of disability, with a significant portion experiencing cognitive issues from conditions like PTSD or brain injuries. Imagine an aging Vietnam War Veteran becoming too frustrated to figure out how to apply for VA benefits online.
- One in five adults who’ve had COVID-19 report experiencing brain fog, with symptoms including memory loss, difficulty concentrating, and trouble processing information. How difficult is it for someone with these symptoms to schedule a series of doctor’s appointments online? (You can find a more detailed journey map of this experience in Coforma’s Health+ Long COVID Report.)
Cognitive accessibility does not exclusively impact those with diagnosed conditions like ADHD, autism, or traumatic brain injuries. It also affects people dealing with temporary cognitive barriers such as stress, fatigue, aging, and even simple distractions.
We’ve all had those moments when we’ve forgotten why we clicked on a webpage or felt overwhelmed by complex form instructions. Prioritizing cognitive accessibility means designing experiences that reduce mental strain and improve usability for everyone—whether they’re dealing with long-term disabilities or just multitasking at the end of a long day.
So, how do we encourage engineers, designers, researchers, and product teams to approach cognitive accessibility with the same urgency they bring to visual and motor accessibility? We talk about it in terms they already know.
Mapping COGA Objectives to WCAG 2.2
In this section, we’ll explore COGA’s key objectives and map them directly to Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2—giving product teams familiar with existing standards a new lens through which to view accessibility.
Objective 1: Help Users Understand What Things Are and How to Use Them
All users need predictable design patterns and clear instructions to easily navigate digital experiences, but folks with cognitive and learning disabilities often rely more heavily on them. Deviating from standard conventions for even seemingly small elements (such as the color of hyperlinks) can lead to confusion. On the other hand, if a form is laid out clearly, it significantly reduces frustration for everyone.
Tips for COGA Objective 1
Aligned WCAG 2.2 Requirements
Help users understand how to use controls and elements on each page
1.3.1 Info & Relationships: Clearly structure and label elements to reflect their meaning
Follow natural reading patterns (top-to-bottom, left-to-right) in form layouts
1.3.2 Meaningful Sequence: Maintain a logical and intuitive content order, preserved in code
Provide visible labels on forms that clearly communicate the purpose of every input
1.3.5 Identify Input Purpose: Use clear, consistent, descriptive labeling for all form fields
Objective 2: Help Users Find What They Need
Quickly finding the right information reduces cognitive load. A user shouldn’t have to puzzle out website navigation or hunt for what they need. For example, using clearly structured website and document headings allows users to easily scan content and understand its hierarchy. Consistent placement of elements across pages helps users build familiarity and reduce mental effort.
Tips for COGA Objective 2
Aligned WCAG 2.2 Requirements
Provide multiple clear pathways (search, navigation menus, shortcuts) to important content
2.4.5 Multiple Ways: Offer users several clear methods to locate and access content
Use clear, descriptive headings to organize content logically
2.4.6 Headings and Labels: Clearly label headings and controls to facilitate easy content scanning
Ensure key navigation elements remain consistent across pages
3.2.3 Consistent Navigation: Maintain consistent placement of navigation components across all pages
Objective 3: Use Clear and Understandable Content
Did you know that 54 percent of US adults lack literary proficiency? If users don’t understand your message, they can’t engage with it, so content needs to be clear and digestible. Avoid technical jargon or unclear abbreviations. Instead, spell things out in plain language. Cut out unnecessary words, aim for an eighth-grade reading level, and remember not all users are native English speakers. On the design side, declutter the UI to bring out what’s actually important so users can focus on the task at hand.
Tips for COGA Objective 3
Aligned WCAG 2.2 Requirements
Write in plain language and avoid unnecessary jargon or acronyms
3.1.3 Unusual Words: Clearly define or avoid uncommon terms and abbreviations
Use short, direct sentences and break content into manageable sections
3.1.5 Reading Level: Keep content straightforward, ensuring readability and ease of comprehension
Objective 4: Help Users Avoid and Correct Mistakes
Thoughtful UX reduces user error by anticipating mistakes and guiding users toward avoiding or fixing them. Remember to use clear instructions, only ask for relevant information, avoid complicated form validation processes, and make it easy to correct mistakes when they occur.
Tips for COGA Objective 4
Aligned WCAG 2.2 Requirements
Clearly indicate required fields and provide helpful validation messages
3.3.1 Error Identification: If an input error is detected, clearly describe the error to the user in text
Offer specific guidance on how to correct errors
3.3.3 Error Suggestion: Offer practical suggestions to help users correct input mistakes
Minimize user errors by offering clear instructions and input examples
3.3.6 Error Prevention (All): Provide mechanisms to help users check, confirm, and reverse their submissions before finalizing
Objective 5: Help Users Focus
The average attention span of Gen Z individuals is only about eight seconds. It’s important to minimize distractions that hinder users from completing tasks and to leave breadcrumbs that will help them find their way back if needed. Intentional, approachable designs, lots of white space, and minimal visual clutter help users focus and accomplish tasks more easily.
Tips for COGA Objective 5
Aligned WCAG 2.2 Requirements
Limit or clearly control animations, auto-play videos, and distracting pop-ups
2.2.2 Pause, Stop, Hide: Give users control to pause or stop distracting or moving content
Use consistent, clearly labeled headings to help users easily identify and stay focused on content
2.4.7 Focus Visible: Clearly indicate focused elements, helping users maintain attention during navigation
Objective 6: Ensure Processes Don’t Rely on Memory
Memory barriers can be a major hurdle for folx with cognitive disabilities, but no one should have to remember fifteen-step instructions or recall information they entered three pages ago to complete a task. Reducing memory load improves usability for everyone, from aging parents to COVID-19 patients struggling with short-term memory loss to the mom whose kid just ran into the room while she was doing taxes online.
Tips for COGA Objective 6
Aligned WCAG 2.2 Requirements
Clearly summarize or display wayfinding elements to help users know where they are in a process
2.4.5 Multiple Ways: Provide various pathways and clear navigation cues to help users remember where they are in a process
Provide clear, persistent instructions visible throughout multi-step processes
3.2.3 Consistent Navigation: Maintain consistent placement of elements and instructions, reducing reliance on memory
Allow users to easily save progress and return to incomplete tasks
3.3.7 Redundant Entry: Ensure users do not have to repeatedly enter the same information
Objective 7: Provide Help and Support
It should be easy for users to get help when they need it, either from a human or on-page (ideally, both options are available). It’s also important to support different ways of understanding content, such as providing an executive summary of a long document. Ensure help is obviously accessible. If someone encounters a problem, help buttons or contact links should never be hidden or difficult to access.
Tips for COGA Objective 7
Aligned WCAG 2.2 Requirements
Place help links or buttons predictably throughout the interface
3.2.3 Consistent Navigation: Help resources should be predictably placed and accessible on all pages
Clearly label help resources and ensure they’re intuitive to locate
3.2.6 Consistent Help: Put help in the same place when it is on multiple pages.
Provide contextual, on-page support where possible
3.3.5 Help: Ensure users can access context-sensitive help for the function they're performing
Objective 8: Support Adaptation and Personalization
Many folks with cognitive and learning disabilities use add-ons or extensions for assistive technology. Often, getting that extra support means making a few personalization tweaks that allow users to select preferred options from a set of alternatives. Try to support personalization when you can, and do not disable add-ons and extensions—some people rely on them for a seamless experience.
Tips for COGA Objective 8
Aligned WCAG 2.2 Requirements
Ensure the usability of content isn’t negatively impacted when users adapt or customize it
1.4.4 Resize Text: Support users increasing text size up to 200% without content loss or functionality problems
Support user customization, such as adjustable text size and page orientation
1.4.10 Reflow: Allow content to adapt without loss of information when users resize text or switch orientations
Further Accessibility Reading
I cover a range of accessibility-related topics and offer resources to help build inclusive products on my blog, Right Bad Code.
For a comprehensive, interactive guide on web accessibility, check out Coforma’s Accessibility Playbook.
It’s for anyone who values accessibility and is committed to designing solutions that work for all users. Written by Coforma’s accessibility experts, it’s a cross-functional guide to help project teams build skills, gain knowledge, and strengthen their accessibility practices and delivery capabilities.