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Operational Usability Heuristics: A Question-Based Approach for Facilitating the Detection of Usability Problems

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Design, User Experience, and Usability: UX Research and Design (HCII 2021)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNISA,volume 12779))

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Abstract

Heuristic evaluation (HE) is a method designed to help evaluators detect usability issues in any given system. It has gained popularity since it is a discount method, meaning it does not require much time or resources. However, it has been reported that novice evaluators face difficulties when applying HE, and they produce results of poor quality when compared to the results produced by expert evaluators. For years, researchers have worked on improving HE in multiple ways by producing different heuristics, modifying and extending existing heuristics, or addressing and improving certain parts of the HE process. In this work, we provide a set of questions based on Nielsen’s heuristics for evaluators to ask themselves while examining the system. This list of questions can facilitate the detection of usability problems in any given system. The list is a result of interviews we conducted with 15 usability experts from both academia and industry.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Computing and Digital Media, DePaul University, 243 South Wabash Avenue, Chicago, IL, 60604, USA

    Anas Abulfaraj & Adam Steele

Authors
  1. Anas Abulfaraj
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  2. Adam Steele
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Correspondence to Anas Abulfaraj .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Hunan University, School of Design, Changsha, China

    Marcelo M. Soares

  2. World Usability Day and Rabb School of Continuing Studies, Division of Graduate Professional Studies, Brandeis University, Newton Center, MA, USA

    Elizabeth Rosenzweig

  3. Aaron Marcus and Associates, Berkeley, CA, USA

    Aaron Marcus

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Abulfaraj, A., Steele, A. (2021). Operational Usability Heuristics: A Question-Based Approach for Facilitating the Detection of Usability Problems. In: Soares, M.M., Rosenzweig, E., Marcus, A. (eds) Design, User Experience, and Usability: UX Research and Design. HCII 2021. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 12779. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78221-4_12

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-78221-4_12

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-78220-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-78221-4

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