- Success Criterion 3.2.2
- Conformance level A
Control Inside a Dialog That Accidentally Closes the Whole Dialog
3.2.2 — On Input
Scenario
Setting
A grocery delivery app's shopping cart
What’s wrong
Interacting with a control inside an overlay unexpectedly closes the overlay — the user presses an in-dialog button and the whole dialog vanishes mid-task.
Example
<select onchange="location.href=this.value">Why it matters
Keyboard and screen-reader users, and people who need predictable form behavior.
How to test
Press a button inside an open overlay/dialog: if it unexpectedly closes the entire overlay instead of just performing its own action, it fails.
How to fix
Changing a field's value must not navigate, submit, close, or change context unless the user was told beforehand or explicitly confirms.
<select onchange="updatePreview()"></select><button onclick="navigate()">Go</button>Changing a value should update state, not silently navigate — let the user confirm with an explicit action.
Outcome
On a grocery delivery app's shopping cart, this barrier is gone for keyboard and screen-reader users — they can complete the task without hitting this wall.
Who is affected
Keyboard and screen-reader users, and people who need predictable form behavior.
Learn more
- Understanding Understanding document (opens in a new tab)
Related scenarios
- Form That Submits Itself the Moment the Last Field Is Filled
- Selecting an Option That Opens a New Window With No Warning
- Dropdown That Navigates to a New Page on Selection
- Checking a Box That Reloads the Page and Loses Entries
- Country Selector That Re-Renders the Form and Drops Focus
- Search Box That Auto-Navigates Once Enough Characters Are Typed