Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to report the possible reasons for premature abandonment by low-literate users during online searches. Previous evidence suggests that low-literate web users abandon their online searches early believing that the information they were looking for should be in the section they were at, thinking that they have either found it or that the information was unavailable. This paper describes an open-card sorting technique combined with multiple Cognitive Task Analysis (CTA) methods to understand why this occurs. Nine high-literate and eight low-literate volunteers of the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) sorted 37 cards representing information in the “Adviceguide” social services website. The qualitative data collected were analysed using Emergent Themes Analysis (ETA). Results showed that low-literate users do not create main and subgroups when classifying the cards but kept them on single-level taxonomy. They rank these groups based on flawed interpretations of concepts and personal or hypothetical experiences. High-literate users create multi-level taxonomies and their interpretations are based on keywords and interpretations of concepts and personal or hypothetical experiences. We believe these differences in classification models may contribute to premature abandonment of online searches by low-literate users.
Highlights
Government departments and other organizations are placing important information on the web and reducing face-to-face advice
To determine the differences in the classification models between low-literate (LL) and high-literate (HL) people, we looked at when the participants initiated their classification process, how participants classified the cards, and what influenced their thinking (Table 1). 3.1 When did participants initiate the classification process? Participants initiated the classification process either as soon as the cards were read or after they laid the cards on the table
It was important to determine these differences because a previous study suggested that the high rate of online search abandonment of LL participants was due to a mismatch of their representation compared to the online website they used
Summary
Government departments and other organizations are placing important information on the web and reducing face-to-face advice. Previous research showed that low-literate users are less successful in obtaining online information [2, 3]. This creates a digital divide due to imbalances in resources and skills needed to effectively participate as a digital citizen. Low levels of literacy could be due to English not being their first language, or leaving school at an early (and an inappropriate) stage. These factors may result in subsequent poor ability to read, write or spell adequately to meet the demands of daily life.
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