Research Opportunities
Get involved
AER is proud to support research that advances the field of blindness and visual impairment. Below you’ll find current studies seeking participants from our community of professionals, individuals who are blind or low vision, families, and others interested in contributing to meaningful research. Your participation helps strengthen the knowledge base that drives innovation, accessibility, and improved outcomes for all. Explore the listings below to learn how you can get involved. Together, we can make a difference through research.
Well-being and Health among Low Vision and Blind Youth Study
Researchersare seeking participants forastudy on experiences of children (ages 9- 17) who are blind or visually impaired and their parent/guardian. This study is virtual and takes 3-4 hours of your time. Some child participants will wear an activity monitor for 145 days. Participating families are paid up to $250 for their time and effort. For mor information and to complete the screening survey visit tinyurl.com/whalaby
This research is supported by the National Eye Institute and have been approved by the Texas Tech University Institutional Review Board.
Developing an Automated System for Individuals Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired
This project seeks to develop a low-cost, fully automated, real-time system that converts and renders visual graphics into accessible formats for individuals who are blind or visually impaired (BVI). To guide the system’s design, researchers are conducting focus groups with BVIs, teachers of the visually impaired (TVIs), and rehabilitation professionals to learn how BVIs currently use or wish to use graphical information and what features they find most helpful in an automated accessibility tool.
Each session will last about 1.5 hours, and participants will receive $25 compensation, with an additional $25 for transportation for BVIs attending in person. Focus groups will tentatively take place in Richmond, the DC metro area, and Hampton Roads, with online options via Zoom.
For more information, contact Prof. Dianne Pawluk, [email protected], (804) 525-8793, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Virginia Commonwealth University Monday through Friday, 9am to 5pm. Or contact Andrew Tuck, [email protected], 703-215-6107.
Recruitment for a Study on Internship Experiences of Blind COMS Candidates and Their Internship Supervisors
The purpose of the study is to explore the internship experiences of blind COMS candidates and COMS who have prior experience supervising a blind or visually impaired COMS candidate via 60–70-minute virtual interview. If you are interested, please contact Bradley Blair, Graduate Research Assistant, Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology, and Foundations, Northern Illinois University, 217-480-7646 or [email protected].
VIPS needs your help!
Throughout the years, VIPS has been tapped to support different agencies in their quest to launch vision services for young children. We take these requests seriously and want to honor the efforts of our partners on their journey. Recently, it has come to our attention that we do not have a tight grasp on what exactly is offered in early childhood programming in each state/region.
VIPS is now on our own quest to get that information – and we need your help! By completing this survey, you will help us greatly. Once the information is collected from a variety of entities, I will be happy to share the results with you.
If you have any questions regarding the survey, they can be addressed to Kathy Mullen at [email protected]. Thank you in advance for your assistance!