Toward Language Justice: Exploring Multilingual Captioning for Accessibility

Research Background and Issues

• What problems or challenges did the authors identify?
  In recent years, research on the accessibility of subtitle experiences has made progress, but most studies focus on English subtitles, neglecting the needs of subtitles in multilingual environments. This limitation has left the needs of over 50% of global multilingual users (including those with disabilities who rely on subtitles) inadequately addressed. Additionally, the number of supported languages is limited, and the quality is inconsistent, failing to meet practical demands. For example, many automated subtitles (e.g., Zoom, Google Meet) only support a few languages and often perform poorly in multilingual scenarios.

• Why is this issue important?
  Of the more than 7,000 languages worldwide, only about 500 are represented on digital platforms, with English dominating and marginalizing other languages. This linguistic inequality not only affects the technological acceptance of multilingual users but also negatively impacts the preservation of social and cultural heritage. Addressing this issue can promote linguistic justice and help individuals with disabilities better participate in social and cultural activities.

• Research Motivation and Related Work
  By reviewing large-scale studies on subtitle accessibility and literature related to multilingualism, the authors identified a monolingual bias in current subtitle technology design and explored linguistic justice as a theoretical framework to address this issue. These studies provide contextual support for multilingual subtitles, but there is a significant lack of exploration into the actual subtitle needs of multilingual users with disabilities.

Solutions

• What methods or solutions did the authors propose?
  Through semi-structured interviews and diary studies with 13 multilingual and disabled users, the authors gained in-depth insights into the practical support and limitations of multilingual subtitles for these users. Based on the findings, the authors proposed the following solutions:

  1. Improving subtitle technology and platform design: Support multilingual subtitle displays (e.g., allowing simultaneous display of original and translated subtitles) and enable dynamic language-switching capabilities.
  2. Enhancing subtitle customization features: Allow users to adjust subtitle language, font size, position, etc., based on personal needs.
  3. Advocating for societal linguistic justice: Promote social education to reduce negative attitudes toward the use of multilingual subtitles and increase understanding of linguistic and accessibility technologies.

• What are the innovative aspects of the solutions?
  The innovation lies in combining the frameworks of linguistic justice and disability justice, breaking away from the monolingual (especially English-centric) design paradigm, and redefining communication accessibility by emphasizing the dynamic interaction between linguistic and disability needs. Additionally, the authors introduced the concept of multilingual practices (e.g., translation, transliteration, cross-language switching) and proposed how these can be better integrated into subtitle display design.

• What are the implementation steps and key technologies used?

  1. Design targeted subtitle display formats (e.g., marking language switches, supporting multi-text displays).
  2. Introduce automatic language recognition models to improve the compatibility of multilingual subtitles on technical platforms.
  3. Strengthen communication between platform developers and multilingual users to validate and optimize user needs.
  4. Advocate for linguistic justice in education and communities to eliminate negative perceptions of subtitle functionalities.

Research Outcomes

• What specific outcomes were achieved?

  1. Through interviews and diary analysis, the study identified factors influencing subtitle design and adoption, including language proficiency, cultural perceptions, and structural characteristics of languages.
  2. Summarized subtitle needs from users' multilingual practices, such as how transliteration, translation, and cross-language switching shape accessibility experiences.
  3. Proposed immediate recommendations for improving subtitle technology (e.g., displaying multilingual subtitles, marking language switches) and long-term design principles (e.g., redefining design approaches that integrate linguistic and disability needs).

• What are the advantages compared to existing solutions?
  The authors' research goes beyond traditional English-centric monolingual design frameworks, expanding the application scenarios of subtitle technology, such as supporting simultaneous multilingual displays and addressing cross-cultural subtitle needs. By integrating the theory of linguistic justice, the study reflects on linguistic marginalization from both social and technological perspectives, advancing the multilingualization of accessibility research.

• What are the experimental or evaluation results?
  Through diary records and interviews, the authors found significant deficiencies in the current design of multilingual subtitles. Users often had to rely on complex manual adjustments to address issues such as language switching and subtitle failures. Specific examples included poor subtitle quality interfering with users' understanding of cultural content and encountering technical obstacles in cross-language content (e.g., Netflix). Users provided concrete suggestions for multilingual subtitle design, reflecting their practical needs.

• What are the limitations and future directions?
  Limitations include a small sample size (13 participants), geographic constraints (participants were only from the U.S. and Canada), and insufficient coverage of the needs of endangered language users. Future research directions include:

  1. Investigating the subtitle needs of endangered language users and strategies for language preservation.
  2. Long-term studies on the acceptance of multilingual technologies in cross-cultural environments.
  3. Expanding accessibility technologies to other linguistic contexts (e.g., sign language subtitles and Braille access).

Overall, the authors' research proposed a novel framework for multilingual subtitle studies, combining linguistic justice with accessibility technologies, providing an important direction for designing accessibility solutions for global multilingual users.