What do thinking-aloud participants say? A comparison of moderated and unmoderated usability sessions
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What do thinking-aloud participants say? A comparison of moderated and unmoderated usability sessions. / Hertzum, Morten; Borlund, Pia; Kristoffersen, Kristina Bonde.
In: International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, Vol. 31, No. 9, 2015, p. 557-570.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - What do thinking-aloud participants say? A comparison of moderated and unmoderated usability sessions
AU - Hertzum, Morten
AU - Borlund, Pia
AU - Kristoffersen, Kristina Bonde
PY - 2015
Y1 - 2015
N2 - The value of thinking aloud in usability tests depends on the content of the users’ verbalizations. We investigated moderated and unmoderated users’ verbalizations during relaxed thinking aloud (i.e., verbalization at levels 1 through 3). Verbalizations of user experience were frequent and mostly relevant to the identification of usability issues. Explanations and redesign proposals were also mostly relevant, but infrequent. The relevance of verbalizations of user experience, explanations, and redesign proposals showed the value of relaxed thinking aloud but did not clarify the tradeoff between rich verbalizations and test reactivity. Action descriptions and system observations – two verbalization categories consistent with both relaxed and classic thinking aloud – were frequent but mainly of low relevance. Across all verbalizations, the positive or negative verbalizations were more often relevant than those without valence. Finally, moderated and unmoderated users made largely similar verbalizations, the main difference being a higher percentage of high-relevance verbalizations by unmoderated users
AB - The value of thinking aloud in usability tests depends on the content of the users’ verbalizations. We investigated moderated and unmoderated users’ verbalizations during relaxed thinking aloud (i.e., verbalization at levels 1 through 3). Verbalizations of user experience were frequent and mostly relevant to the identification of usability issues. Explanations and redesign proposals were also mostly relevant, but infrequent. The relevance of verbalizations of user experience, explanations, and redesign proposals showed the value of relaxed thinking aloud but did not clarify the tradeoff between rich verbalizations and test reactivity. Action descriptions and system observations – two verbalization categories consistent with both relaxed and classic thinking aloud – were frequent but mainly of low relevance. Across all verbalizations, the positive or negative verbalizations were more often relevant than those without valence. Finally, moderated and unmoderated users made largely similar verbalizations, the main difference being a higher percentage of high-relevance verbalizations by unmoderated users
KW - Faculty of Humanities
KW - Thinking aloud
KW - Verbalization
KW - Usability evaluation method
KW - User test
KW - Usability
KW - User experience
U2 - 10.1080/10447318.2015.1065691
DO - 10.1080/10447318.2015.1065691
M3 - Journal article
VL - 31
SP - 557
EP - 570
JO - International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction
JF - International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction
SN - 1044-7318
IS - 9
ER -
ID: 135720899