quartz/content/notes/evaluating-designs.md

title	tags
evaluating-designs	info203

#unfinished

Why to evaluate using 'outside' people:

• how do we know if a prototype is good
• designer/developers are not 'fresh' -> they already have experience with the product
• designer/developers don't know what real users will do

0.1 Issues to consider

• Reliability/precision
  • how accurate is your study?
  • Is is reproducible -> if it was repeated, would you get the same result
• Generalizability
  • Is your sample representative
• Realism
  • Would observed behaviour also occur in the wild
• Comparison
  • Shows how different options were recieved
  • rather than a "people liked it" study
• work involved/efficiency
  • How cost efficient are your methods

0.2 Factors to consider when choosing an evaluation method

• Stage in the cycle at which the evaluation is carried out -> (design / implementation)
• Style of evaluation -> (lab / field)
• Level of subjectivity or objectivity
• Type of measurement -> (qualitative / quantitative)
• Information provided -> (high-level / low-level)
• Immediacy of response -> (real-time / recollection of events)
• Level of interference implied -> (intrusiveness)
• Resources required -> (equipment, time, money, subjects, expertise, context)

0.3 Styles of evaluation

0.3.1.1.1 Laboratory Studies

• 1st step: Designer evaluates his/her UI
• Specialised equipment for testing available
• Undisturbed (can be a good or bad thing)
• Allows for well controlled experiments
• Substitute for dangerous or remote real-world locations
• Variations in manipulations possible / alternatives

0.3.1.1.2 Field Studies

• Within the actual user’s working environment
• Observe the system in action
• Disturbance / interruptions (+/-)
• Long-term studies possible
• Bias: presence of observer and equipment
• Needs support / disturbs real workflow

0.4 Quantitative vs Qualitative methods

0.4.1.1.1 Quantitative Measures

• Usually numeric
• E.g. # of errors, time to complete a certain task, questionnaire with scales
• Can be (easily) analysed using statistical techniques
• Rather objective
• Most useful in comparing alternative designs
• Test hypotheses
• Confirm designs

0.4.1.1.2 Qualitative Measures

• Non-numeric
• E.g. survey, interview, informal observation, heuristic evaluation
• Difficult to analyse, demands interpretation
• Rather subjective
• User’s overall reaction and understanding of design
• Generate hypotheses
• Find flaws

0.5 Stage in cycle

0.5.1.1.1 Design Stage

• Only concept (even if very detailed) exists
• More experts, less users involved
• Greatest pay-off: early error detection saves a lot of development money
• Rather qualitative measures (exceptions: detail alternatives; fundamental questions, ...)

0.5.1.1.2 Implementation

• Artefact exists, sth. concrete to be tested
• More users, less experts involved
• Assures quality of product before or after deployment; bug detection
• Rather quantitative measures (exceptions: overall satisfaction, appeal, ...)

0.6 Methods

0.6.1 Usability studies

• Bringing people in to test Product
  • Usage setting is not ecologically valid - usage in real world can be different
  • can have tester bias - testers are not the same as real users
  • cant compare interfaces
  • requires physical contact

0.6.2 Surveys and focus groups

• quicly get feedback from large number of responses
• auto tally ressults
• easy to compare different products

• responder bias
• Not accurate representation of real product

• e.g.,

• Focus groups

  • gathering groups of people to discuss an interface
  • group setting can help or hinder

0.6.3 Feedback from experts

• Peer critique
• Dogfooding
  • Using tools yourself
• heuristic-evaluation
  • structured feedback

0.6.4 Comparative experiments

• in lab, field, online
• short or long duration
• which option is better?
• what matters most?
• can see real usage
• more actionable

0.6.5 Participant observation

• observe what people do in the actual evironment
• usually more long term
  • find things not present in short term studies
• observation

0.6.6 Simulation and formal models

• more mathmatical quantitative
• useful if you have a theory to test
• often used for input techniques
• can test multiple alternatives quickly
• typically simulation is used in conjugtion with monte carlo optimisation

0.7 Query techniques

• Interviews
• questionnaires
  • less flexible
  • larger samples possible
  • design of questionnaire is for expert only
  • use of standard (proven) questionnaires recommended
  • types of questions:
    • general (age, gender)
    • open ended
    • scalar (e.g., likert-like scales)
    • multiple choice
    • ranking

0.8 Users

• users can come up with great ideas
  • lead user -> need specific soluton that does not exist -> often make up their own solution
  • extreme user -> use existing solution for it's intended purpose to an extreme degree
  • typical user ->