About
| Version: | WCAG 2.0 and up |
|---|---|
| Number: | 3.2.1 |
| Level: | A |
| Applicability: |
|
| Requirement: |
When any user interface component receives focus, it does not initiate a change of context. |
| Guidance: | |
| Techniques: |
Purpose
The purpose of this success criterion is to ensure that users do not trigger unexpected actions that change the context (e.g., submitting a form, spawning a new window, changing focus to another element, changing the text) when clicking on or tabbing to an interactive element.
Not all users can perceive that the context has changed, or they may have difficulty keeping track of such changes.
How to Meet
Authors need to ensure that any user interface components do not automatically trigger events when a user tabs to them or clicks on them (for controls that are not expected to trigger events, such as input fields).
Note that although this success criterion does not apply to controls that are expected to change context when clicked on (e.g., buttons), tabbing to these elements should still not cause a change.
Additional Information
The following knowledge base pages provide more information about how to address this success criterion for publishing content: