An Exploratory Study into Determining the Relative Importance of Key Criteria in Web Usability: A Multi-Criteria Approach

Abstract

Organizations are investing significant amounts of resources in both internal and external web-based applications. Many of these applications must be used by either employees of the organization or by e-customers of the organization. One of the key components of any web-based application is its interface, and a key criteria in utilization of these web-based applications is the website's usability. This study investigated five criteria that have been suggested to impact an individual's assessment of a website's usability. Utilizing a multi-criteria decision making approach, we were able to assess the relative importance of these criteria as they apply to website usability. Our findings suggest that, similar to the technology adoption literature, ease of use and navigation are two critical components in determining website usability. This study also investigated the impact of specific individual differences (gender, computer anxiety, innovativeness, and computer self-efficacy).