Bridging the Digital Divide for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities: Assessing the Role of ChatGPT in Enabling Access, Evaluation, Integration, Management, and Creation of Digital Content

Bridging the digital divide for persons with intellectual disabilities is imperative in promoting their inclusion and empowerment in the digital age. This research assesses the pivotal role of ChatGPT, a large language model, in this context. Hypothesis: We hypothesize that ChatGPT can empower persons with intellectual disabilities to access, evaluate, integrate, manage, and create digital content. We also anticipate that improvements in ChatGPT's usability and accessibility will enhance its effectiveness. Research Questions: 1. How a large language model like ChatGPT bridge the digital divide for persons with intellectual disabilities, enabling them to access, evaluate, integrate, manage, and create digital content? 2. How can the usability and accessibility of ChatGPT be further improved to enhance its effectiveness in supporting persons with intellectual disabilities? Methods: Our study employed a mixed-methods approach, involving a survey with 19 participants, including 15 people with intellectual disabilities and 4 support staff, 2 of whom are neurodiverse. Additionally, we conduct a comprehensive evaluation of ChatGPT's features with COGA guidelines to assess its utility for individuals with intellectual disabilities. Results: ChatGPT shows promise in bridging the digital divide for persons with intellectual disabilities. Participants found it generally easy to understand and valuable for creating accessible content. Feedback emphasized the importance of visual aids, voice-to-text options, and broader accessibility through an Android app. Additionally, the Service Operator at SJOG (2Saint John of God Community Services) expressed gratitude to the researchers for introducing ChatGPT to persons with intellectual disabilities, highlighting its positive impact on their productivity and its valuable role in facilitating the creation of digital content for the RTCN project. Conclusion: This research underscores ChatGPT's potential to empower individuals with intellectual disabilities in the digital realm. By addressing the digital divide, it offers enhanced participation and inclusion. Ongoing refinements and user-centric considerations are essential to maximize ChatGPT's usability and accessibility for this unique user group.