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Proceedings ArticleDOI

A formative evaluation method for designing WWW sites

22 Oct 1997-pp 223-230
TL;DR: In this presentation, a formative evaluation methodology to help Web page authors improve their Web pages is outlined, and findings from the Web design research that began in 1994 are illustrated.
Abstract: Since 1995, the World Wide Web has grown exponentially, with thousands of individuals, businesses and organizations developing and posting home pages. Some companies and organizations invest thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours developing highly artistic and visually-pleasing pages only to discover that their users become lost when navigating their site, have trouble reading the on-screen text and cannot find the information they seek. Consequently, users never return to their Web site. While numerous authors provide HTML tagging guidelines for developing Web pages, few authors have provided research-based guidelines from information design, interface design, hypertext, legibility and related research. To make Web pages more effective, developers can turn to (1) communication science-based guidelines for enhancing Web site design, and (2) formative evaluation methods. In our presentation, we outline a formative evaluation methodology to help Web page authors improve their Web pages, and illustrate the process with findings from our Web design research that began in 1994.
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is argued that some of the limitations in terms of resources and skills inherent in the small‐scale in‐house development environment can be overcome through the adoption of an informal Web site development model and suitable usability methods.
Abstract: The number and range of organisations developing a Web site is growing rapidly. Many of these Web sites are developed in‐houseeven though the skills and resources required for developing a successful site may not be available. It is argued that some of the limitations in terms of resources and skills inherent in the small‐scale in‐house development environment can be overcome through the adoption of an informal Web site development model and suitable usability methods. Presents an informal development model synthesised from a review of development case studies and published Web research literature. This model identifies the main stages and tasks of development. A review of information gathering and usability methods currently being employed is integrated into the model. The importance of understanding user and information provider needs is discussed. A number of common usability methods are then examined in greater detail. The appropriateness of the model and methods for the small‐scale in‐house development environment is considered.

138 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors introduce the dimension "web-empowerment", which is a multidimensional construct comprising of consumer views on various dimensions of relevant and successful websites and the relevance of this construct and practical issues in the context of a cross-country sample of SME's is empirically examined.
Abstract: The emergence of the Internet and the World Wide Web has been argued to fundamentally reshape economic conditions and business practices of firms. It is seen as a promoter of rapid internationalisation of companies, particularly small and medium enterprises. In the aftermath of the burst of the electronic-bubble business practitioners and academics look with scrutiny on successful web-strategies, relevant dimensions of online-success and try to identify viable website practices which enable long-term rewards. The literature offers a rather patchy pattern for successful web-strategies and consumer perspectives on what is expected from websites is hardly available. Within this paper, we introduce the dimension “web-empowerment”. This is a multidimensional construct comprising of consumer views on various dimensions of relevant and successful websites. The web-empowerment scale is based on a large sample from Austria, and developed according to scale development procedures. The relevance of this construct and practical issues in the context of a cross-country sample of SME’s is empirically examined. The paper concludes by offering implications for SME practitioners and for research.

53 citations


Cites background from "A formative evaluation method for d..."

  • ...Following the idea of building successful informational or transactional websites, numerous frameworks have been devised to develop websites (Cunliffe 2000; Day, 1997; Morgan, 1996; Zimmerman et al., 1997 )....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This study examines most of the webometric indicators that have been proposed in the literature together with others of their own design by applying them to a set of thematically related Web spaces and analyzing the relationships between the different indicators.
Abstract: There have been many attempts to evaluate Web spaces on the basis of the information that they provide, their form or functionality, or even the importance given to each of them by the Web itself. The indicators that have been developed for this purpose fall into two groups: those based on the study of a Web space's formal characteristics, and those related to its link structure. In this study we examine most of the webometric indicators that have been proposed in the literature together with others of our own design by applying them to a set of thematically related Web spaces and analyzing the relationships between the different indicators.

23 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: It is proposed that to improve computer-mediated communication, Web site design should accommodate culturally diverse user groups and a theory of cultural cognitive design is proposed as a means of understanding how cognitive styles that develop under the influence of culture lead to different ways of designing and organizing information for the Web.
Abstract: Although studies have linked culture to online user preferences and performance, few communication researchers have recognized the impact of culture on online information design and usability. It is important to ask if people are better able to use and prefer Web sites created by designers from their own culture. We propose that to improve computer-mediated communication, Web site design should accommodate culturally diverse user groups. First, a body of research is presented that aligns East Asian cultures with more holistic cognitive styles and Western cultures with more analytical cognitive styles. Building on this contrast, a theory of cultural cognitive design is proposed as a means of understanding how cognitive styles that develop under the influence of culture lead to different ways of designing and organizing information for the Web.

21 citations


Cites background from "A formative evaluation method for d..."

  • ...Thus far, the most prominent research in interface design and usability has been conducted in CMC and HCI (Ito & Nakakoji 1996; Nielsen 1999; Sears et al. 2000; Zimmerman et al. 1997)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A strategy for the design and Organization of materials for Web‐based instruction (WBI) founded upon cognitive modeling for the identification and organization of the major concepts in the domain of interest, based upon the Pathfinder paradigm.
Abstract: This paper presents a strategy for the design and organization of materials for Web-based instruction (WBI) founded upon cognitive modeling for the identification and organization of the major concepts in the domain of interest, based upon the Pathfinder paradigm The original purpose of the Pathfinder paradigm was to model aspects of human semantic (associative) memory A brief introduction to the Pathfinder paradigm is presented, and the rationale for its use in WBI is discussed The development of this paradigm for WBI, in the context of eliciting and representing knowledge from domain experts, and its use in a pilot study is described The domain used for the pilot study was the A* search algorithm, embedded within an introductory course in artificial intelligence Assessment of the paradigm is also discussed, and preliminary methods are applied to the pilot study

14 citations

References
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Book
31 Dec 1969
TL;DR: This chapter discusses the construction of Inquiry, the science of inquiry, and the role of data in the design of research.
Abstract: Part I: AN INTRODUCTION TO INQUIRY. 1. Human Inquiry and Science. 2. Paradigms, Theory, and Social Research. 3. The Ethics and Politics of Social Research. Part II: THE STRUCTURING OF INQUIRY: QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE. 4. Research Design. 5. Conceptualization, Operationalization, and Measurement. 6. Indexes, Scales, and Typologies. 7. The Logic of Sampling. Part III: MODES OF OPERATION: QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE. 8. Experiments. 9. Survey Research. 10. Qualitative Field Research. 11. Unobtrusive Research. 12. Evaluation Research. Part IV: ANALYSIS OF DATA: QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE. 13. Qualitative Data Analysis. 14. Quantitative Data Analysis. 15. The Logic of Multivariate Analysis. 16. Statistical Analyses. 17. Reading and Writing Social Research. APPENDICES. A. Using the Library. B. GSS Household Enumeration Questionnaire. C. Random Numbers. D. Distribution of Chi Square. E. Normal Curve Areas. F. Estimated Sampling Error. Preface. Acknowledgments.

14,990 citations


"A formative evaluation method for d..." refers background in this paper

  • ...To learn more about their users and to evaluate Web designs, Web authors can turn to diverse social science research methodologies, such as surveys (Babbie, 1992; Dillman, 1976; Folwer, 1990: Zimmerman & Muraski, 1995), focus groups (Kruger, 1994), nominal group techniques (Delbecq, Van de Ven, & Gustafson, 1975, Moore, 1987), and laboratory and field experiments including usability testing (Nielsen, 1993)....

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  • ...To learn more about their users and to evaluate Web designs, Web authors can turn to diverse social science research methodologies, such as surveys (Babbie, 1992; Dillman, 1976; Folwer, 1990: Zimmerman & Muraski, 1995), focus groups (Kruger, 1994), nominal group techniques (Delbecq, Van de Ven, &…...

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Journal Article
TL;DR: A survey of existing hypertext systems, their applications, and their design can be found in this article, where the authors present a survey of some of the most important design issues that go into fashioning a hypertext environment.
Abstract: This article is a survey of existing hypertext systems, their applications, and their design. It is both an introduction to the world of hypertext and, at a deeper cut, a survey of some of the most important design issues that go into fashioning a hypertext environment. The concept of hypertext is quite simple: Windows on the screen are associated with objects in a database, and links are provided between these objects, both graphically (as labelled tokens) and in the database (as pointers). But this simple idea is creating much excitement. Several universities have created laboratories for research on hypertext, many articles have been written about the concept just within the last year, and the Smithsonian Institute has created a demonstration laboratory to develop and display hypertext technologies.

2,617 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A survey of existing hypertext systems, their applications, and their design is both an introduction to the world of hypertext and a survey of some of the most important design issues that go into fashioning a hypertext environment.
Abstract: This article is a survey of existing hypertext systems, their applications, and their design. It is both an introduction to the world of hypertext and, at a deeper cut, a survey of some of the most important design issues that go into fashioning a hypertext environment. The concept of hypertext is quite simple: Windows on the screen are associated with objects in a database, and links are provided between these objects, both graphically (as labelled tokens) and in the database (as pointers). But this simple idea is creating much excitement. Several universities have created laboratories for research on hypertext, many articles have been written about the concept just within the last year, and the Smithsonian Institute has created a demonstration laboratory to develop and display hypertext technologies.

2,548 citations


"A formative evaluation method for d..." refers background in this paper

  • ...Researchers have tried a variety of strategies for overcoming being lost in hypertext and navigating hypertext-based programs (Conklin, 1987; Roselli, 1991; Utting & Yankelovich, 1989)....

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  • ...Research and experience show that readers often become lost in hypertext documents (Conklin, 1987; Utting & Yankelovich, 1!...

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Book
01 Jan 1978

1,655 citations

Book
01 Jan 1993
TL;DR: A Practical Guide to Usability Testing discusses the full range of testing options from quick studies with a few subjects to more formal tests with carefully designed controls and includes forms that you can use or modify to conduct a usability test and layouts of existing labs that will help you build your own.
Abstract: From the Publisher: In A Practical Guide to Usability Testing, the authors begin by defining usability, advocating and explaining the methods of usability engineering and reviewing many techniques for assessing and assuring usability throughout the development process. They then take you through all the steps in planning and conducting a usability test, analyzing data, and using the results to improve both products and processes. Written in plain English and filled with examples from many types of products and tests, A Practical Guide to Usability Testing discusses the full range of testing options from quick studies with a few subjects to more formal tests with carefully designed controls. The authors discuss the place of usability laboratories in testing as well as the skills you need to conduct a test. Included are forms that you can use or modify to conduct a usability test and layouts of existing labs that will help you build your own. The authors, a human factors psychologist and a linguist, have extensive experience conducting research on usability, doing usability testing, helping companies set up usability labs and programs, and teaching usability engineering and testing.

1,519 citations