Table of Contents

Introduction

User testing with real users is the most fundamental usability method and is in some sense irreplaceable, since it provides direct information about how people use computers and what their exact problems are with the concrete interface being tested Jakob Nielsen, 1994.

UX or design research is a collection of surveys, methods, and techniques meant to elicit feedback from users on separate elements of the UX or the design as a whole. It’s meant to be a subtle process of sourcing information that helps designers like us change their projects and tweak them to the user’s liking. It can include deploying a nearly finished product to a customer, a prototype, or a barebones build that’s specifically intended for testing out a single element.

By conducting all this testing and surveying, we try to get a look at my design from the perspective of my users. It’s not about making them love our ideas, it’s about tailoring our ideas so that they can be loved by the user. The onus is on the designer to do right by the user and, by analyzing the data from the design research, create excellent UX. It’s a way to improve our work and help us make sense of a project in a field that’s new to us.

The usability of a product is determined in user tests or usability tests. The most basic type of usability testing is testing with the most representative users possible, the test persons. This is to some extent essential as it provides unbiased information on how users use the product and where they experience problems using it. Usability testing can be divided into two types: depending on the objective and time of the evaluation, either a formative or a summative evaluation is used.

The goal of a formative evaluation is to identify weaknesses and opportunities for improvement. Therefore, they should be carried out as early as possible in the development of the product. The study focuses on qualitative statements, e.g. verbal statements, descriptions of observations or direct suggestions for improvement made by the test person. The data collected in this way is used by a test manager to identify concrete problems when using the product. Based on the results, solutions for identified problems are developed. The methods used include the Walkthrough method, the Concurrent Thinking Aloud and the Retrospective Thinking Aloud.

A summative evaluation is used to evaluate a completed and finished product, i.e. a quality control or an overall assessment of the product. A summative evaluation collects quantitative data. For example, the time required or the number of errors made by the test person during the processing of the tasks are recorded and evaluated. On the basis of the knowledge gained from the summative evaluation, the quality of a product can be assessed after the test or compared and checked with the previous version, an alternative version or even a competing product. These methods can be supported by questionnaires, metrics and surveys.

The data can be optained by qualitative or quantitative methods. The former is about answering questions of responsiveness and user satisfaction. Pretty much a way to find out “why didn’t anybody click my button?” or “which elements stand out thanks to my design?”. It can be a bit harder to solidify into data since many users, when prompted, hesitate and can’t give a precise response because an end-user doesn’t think about a site in terms of elements.

Quantitative design research is about gathering data on the amount of visitors pages get, the number of clicks given to a button etc. This one is easier to interpret and turn into usable data, which means you get results faster. However, I find that you have to do both if you want some real results and just surface-level improvements.

What Does a UX Researcher Do?

It’s their responsibility to conduct testing, collect feedback, and turn it all into usable data for the improvement of the UX. As a UX researcher, a person has to interact with the end-users and elicit solid responses from them, something that can actually push the design in a direction that will be received favorably.

Why Does UX Research Matter?

It’d be insane of us (or any designer, for that matter) to suggest that we have some kind of innate knowledge of what any user wants. Tastes change, preferences shift, and userbases can be drastically different depending on the project you’re working on. Having UX research on your side means coming into any task with a bit of confidence and some understanding of what needs to be done. Sure, you can always take care of the basics without it if you’re a good designer but this kind of thoroughness is what really takes the UX to the next level.

Sources:

Usability Engineering” by Jakob Nielsen

https://uxdesign.cc/introduction-to-ux-design-research-bb9617838e79