Abstract
This volume is the first in the “Users’ Guides to Human Factors and Ergonomics Methods” series. The series endeavors to provide clear, concise introductions to human factors methods. In this sense, they are similar to the Sage “green books” on quantitative methods, which have been invaluable to human factors and experimental psychology researchers for years.
Achieving that goal makes this book suitable for several audiences and purposes. At the introductory level, it serves as valuable supplementary material for undergraduate and graduate courses in human factors. For a more advanced audience, it delivers a great reference for professionals who need a no-nonsense guide to usability testing. It presents the nuts and bolts of usability assessment for products, services, and systems first by defining usability and then by offering a straightforward description of the attributes of usable products, systems, and services. It then walks the reader through a real-life example of how the author accomplished one such project. After reading the book, practitioners should be able to conduct their own usability tests.
Several features of the book are especially valuable. First, it provides an effective discussion of usability assessment myths and how to disabuse colleagues of these beliefs. Other books provide similar discussions, but this one treats these myths more seriously and provides more compelling arguments against them. Second, the book is peppered with FAQ-type sections, which address some of the most important questions about usability testing and provide well-reasoned, science-based answers. Third, it provides a straightforward process, as well as an accompanying diagram, for usability assessment. This diagram serves as an advanced organizer for the material.
The one weakness I detected was the black-and-white images, which were reminiscent of the Human Factors journal and made the volume appear dated. The images do not do justice to the material provided by the author.
Most impressive, however, is that the book provides an up-to-date, comprehensive treatment of usability assessment in a clear and concise writing style. The author limits jargon and explains necessary terminology in a way that is accurate and accessible. Because of this, it achieves exactly what this series intended to do, offering immediately applicable information in a concise format.
Footnotes
Russell J. Branaghan is associate professor of human systems engineering at Arizona State University. His academic interests include cognitive human factors and usability in medical devices and automobiles.