Elsevier Library Connect Pamphlet: Usability Testing

Author and Editor
CHRIS JASEK
Elsevier User Centered Design Group Manager

Produced by
Library Connect, in collaboration with the Elsevier User Centered Design Group

Library Connect Editorial Office
ELSEVIER
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Usability Testing

Test your site for usability

University of West Florida Curriculum Materials
Library Director Jeannie Kamerman (on the left)
and Elsevier User Centered Design Group Manager
Chris Jasek discuss library website usability at ALA
Annual 2006.

Conduct a usability study and you can make sure your library site is meeting your users� needs.

The preceding guidelines � backed by usability studies and based on best practices � can help improve usability of your library website. But nothing compares to observing your patrons as they navigate your own site and seeing first-hand where they encounter difficulties.

Informal usability studies can take little time and money and yet provide valuable data. See The Handbook of Usability Testing: How to Plan, Design, and Conduct Effective Tests by Jeffrey Rubin (1994) or Usability Engineering by Jakob Nielsen (1993) for more information.

Tracking usage and repeating usability testing, after website changes have been made, should indicate if improvements contribute to a better experience for your users.

The following articles provide excellent discussion of recent library website usability studies.

George, C.A. (2005). Usability testing and design of a library website: An iterative approach. OCLC Systems & Services, 21 (3), 167-180.
Stephan, E., Cheng, D. T., & Young, L. M. (2006). A usability survey at the University of Mississippi Libraries for the improvement of the library home page. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 32 (1), 35-51. www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00991333
Turnbow, D., Kasianovitz, K., Snyder, L., Gilbert, D., & Yamamoto, D. (2005). Usability testing for web redesign: A UCLA case study. OCLC Systems & Services, 21 (3), 226-234.
VandeCreek, L. M. (2005). Usability analysis of Northern Illinois University Libraries� website: A case study. OCLC Systems & Services, 21 (3), 181-192.
Ward, J. L. (2006). Web site redesign: The University of Washington Libraries� experience. OCLC Systems & Services, 22 (3), 207-216.

�The most common usability test is often called the walk through or talk aloud, where the user is observed performing certain tasks and asked to share his thought process with the observer who is taking notes. He is asked to tell what he might click on next and what he expects to see. This frequently reveals where users are stumped, whether by unfamiliar terminology, unclear navigation or poor screen layout.

�... usability testing does not have to be an elaborate process. It�s better to have informal �checks� throughout the development cycle than to wait till the end to �test� the final product, when any redesign is costly. Usability testing ideally is conducted early and often as an integral part of the design process.� � Judy Luther (2004), �User Centered Design = Successful Products�
www.charlestonco.com/features.cfm?id=143&type=np