Mobile Application Usability Evaluation: A Study Based on Demography

Abstract

An application or product is considered “usable” if it is pleasing, easy to use, and works as expected user interface. Most companies majorly focus on the application’s functional requirements but put minimal effort into user experience (usability). Consumers’ adaptation of these applications depends on the number of features and user interface. In this work, an android based application, “Houzcalls” is used for usability study using PACMAD usability model. This work is focused on the variations in PACMAD attributes based on the participants’ education and age. Participants are segregated into two major groups FG1 and FG2 based on their education. All the participants with more than 10 years of education are in FG1 while others in FG2. Each focal group is divided into four subgroups Under 25, 25-35, 36-45, and Over 45 based on their ages. The results have shown participants in FG1 have shown more Effectiveness, Efficiency, Satisfaction, Learnability, and Memorability. In contrast, they have committed fewer Errors and shown less Cognitive Load during usability testing as compared to FG2. These variations can also be seen age-wise as generally “Under 25 and 25-35” subgroups have shown better results than other subgroups. It is inferred from the study that application usability and acceptability can be increased by considering the general population during development which includes all groups of people based on education and age.