The Use Of Links Within Forms
The decision to present back buttons within multi-page forms as links instead of a form controls may create a potential issue for screenreader users and a consistent use of forms controls appears to be the solution.
JAWS has a Links List feature and a Forms mode. Buttons, like all other form controls appear in the forms mode dialogue but not in the links list. It has been suggested that, when using a screen reader, the user will probably expect to find a form’s “Back” and “Continue” buttons in the forms mode dialogue.
Ideally, screenreader users should be aware of all the buttons/actions in a form when using Forms mode. If the form uses a mixture of buttons and links, the user will be forced to toggle between the Links List and Forms mode to determine all of the options available.
Where “Back” is a function of the form, it should be presented as a form control - not a link - as it is essentially resetting (or storing) the data on the current page, allowing the previous page to be edited. A “Start again” button effectively resets the data for the whole form, so it is logical to have this as a button. “Submit” should always be a button as it epitomises the purpose of a button - to send data.
Obviously, if you have access to server side processing, you should make use of it to deliver the required result by making all buttons type="submit" and then use a server side script to process the result based on the values of the individual buttons . This should guarantee that the required action is always performed, even if Javascript is off.
With thanks to Grant Broome, Steve Green, Neil Whiteley and the GAWDS mailing list.