Hearing the Screen: How Jordanian Viewers with Visual Impairments Receive the Arabic Audio Description of a Netflix Series
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Abstract
Audio description (AD) turns the visual content of films and television into spoken words, yet little is known about how Arab viewers who are blind or partially sighted receive it. This study surveyed 152 Jordanians with visual impairments after they watched an audio-described excerpt of the Netflix series AlRawabi School for Girls (Madrast Al-Rawabi LilBanat), using a 15-item, five-point Likert questionnaire on viewing habits, technical quality, comprehension, attitude, and recommendations for future provision. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported four measured constructs (CFI = .941, RMSEA = .069, SRMR = .060), and the hypotheses were tested with a bootstrapped path model, moderation analysis, and group comparisons. Technical quality (β = .24) and comprehension (β = .30) each independently predicted attitude towards the service (R² = .23), and attitude was the strongest predictor of calls for wider provision (β = .39); both technical quality and comprehension influenced these calls indirectly through attitude. The comprehension–attitude link did not vary by gender, age, or education, and comprehension did not differ by degree of visual impairment, although older and more educated viewers rated technical quality lower. Almost all respondents wanted Arabic broadcasters to offer AD free of charge. The results inform describer training and accessibility policy in the Arab world.
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