In the previous post I introduced the task analysis module for in-depth customer interviews. One way to start the task analysis part of the interview is to have the customer create a task list. A task list is a list of activities that participants recall when asked about a given subject matter. For example, in research for a resort web site, the interviewer asks what types of content and functionality the participant currently uses on travel web sites. Although analytics give a more accurate picture of the prevalence of different activities in the system in question, an activity list or index helps characterize the individual being interviewed in terms of usage patterns, preferences, breadth of activities etc. The activity index is useful later in the interview when the research team asks participants to discuss a common activity in detail, noting barriers and opportunities for each.
Some activities in the list may be related to the system being researched, but may not specifically be conducted within the system. For example, participants may be asked to list resorts they have visited, or which areas within a resort they typically use, both of which are broader than asking what tasks they typically undertake using a guest information system. The purpose for capturing these broader activity indexes is to characterize the person being interviewed. The data can help the research team formulate an experience model.
When constructing an activity list, it is helpful to ask participants how they expect to go about the activity using a web site or information device. Their expected task path can be used to support the mental model and current or proposed interaction model.
Copyright 2009, Paul Bryan, Usography Corporation (http://www.usography.com)
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