The Enduring Relevance of Manual Testing in Usability and Accessibility Evaluation: A Critical Examination of Human-Centered Quality Assurance

Manual testing continues to play a vital role in evaluating usability and accessibility, even as automated tools become more advanced. Human testers can uncover real-world usability issues, user experience challenges, and accessibility barriers that automated tools frequently miss [3], [5], [18]. By interacting directly with digital products, manual testing provides a deeper understanding of how people with different abilities use a website or application, ensuring a more inclusive and user-friendly experience [7], [9], [10]. This human-centered approach allows for the detection of context-sensitive defects, offers immediate and actionable feedback, and supports compliance with accessibility standards like WCAG [1], [2], [6]. Combining manual methods with automation leads to more thorough quality assurance, but manual testing remains essential for delivering digital solutions that truly meet the needs of all users [4], [12], [16]