Restarting the conversation about conversational search: exploring new possibilities for multimodal and collaborative systems with people with intellectual disability

Advanced sensing capabilities are emerging in smart conversational systems. Without support, keyword-based searching can be challenging, requiring expertise, experience and the ability to formulate abstract knowledge of the information-seeking process. However, people with intellectual disability are often comfortable communicating in conversations that allow for both verbal and visual communication. This paper presents an understanding of multimodal and collaborative search systems for people with intellectual disability. First, we present a Wizard of Oz probe, called MMCS, that provides flexibility and customisation to explore different modalities and opportunities for accessible opportunities. We present the outcomes of an ethnographic study conducted in a collaborative setting with twenty participants across four sessions and follow-up interviews. We found that multimodal and conversational interaction can play a crucial role in social support, peer awareness, and personal interests. Finally, we provide design implications and future research directions towards understanding, responding, and reformulating query intent for multimodal and collaborative search systems.