Matt BiehlWhat is ISO 9241-110 and why is it important for UX professionals?
ISO 9241-110:2020 is an international standard that provides guidance on the ergonomics of human-system interaction. Specifically, it focuses on the principles for the design of interactive systems that are more user-friendly, efficient, and accessible. This standard is part of the ISO 9241 series, which covers various aspects of ergonomics and user experience design, including display screens, office environments, and software ergonomics.
ISO 9241-110:2020 outlines seven dialogue principles that are crucial for creating effective user interactions with systems. These principles are:
- Suitability for the user’s tasks: Ensuring that the system is relevant and suitable for the tasks that users need to perform.
- Self-descriptiveness: The system should be self-explanatory, providing feedback and guidance to users about what it does and how to use it.
- Conformity with user expectations: The design should meet users' expectations, based on their previous experiences and conventions in similar contexts.
- Learnability: The system should be easy to learn, allowing users to quickly become proficient in using it.
- Controllability: Users should have control over the system's interactions, being able to initiate and control actions and behaviors.
- Use error robustness: The system should be forgiving, minimizing the impact of errors and allowing for easy recovery from mistakes.
- User engagement: The system should be designed to be engaging, encouraging users to interact with it and promoting a positive user experience.
The importance of ISO 9241-110:2020 lies in its role as a comprehensive framework that guides the design and evaluation of user interfaces. It ensures that products and services are developed with a strong focus on the user's needs, capabilities, and preferences, leading to more usable, accessible, and satisfactory outcomes. By adhering to these principles, UX professionals can create designs that are not only functional but also provide a better overall experience for the user. This standard helps in setting a global benchmark for user experience quality, encouraging consistency and high quality in design processes across different industries and products.
A three-step approach for conducting a heuristic evaluation based on the seven principles.
1. Suitability for the User’s Tasks
Step 1: Identify User Tasks
- Compile a comprehensive list of tasks that users are expected to perform on the website. This includes both primary tasks (e.g., purchasing a product) and secondary tasks (e.g., updating account information).
Step 2: Evaluate Task Alignment
- For each task, evaluate how well the website supports the completion of that task. Consider the steps required, the intuitiveness of the process, and whether the website provides all necessary information and tools.
Step 3: Provide Recommendations
- For tasks that are not well-supported, provide specific recommendations for improvement. This could involve streamlining processes, adding missing information or functionalities, or redesigning certain aspects of the UI.
2. Self-descriptiveness
Step 1: Assess Clarity of Information
- Review the website to determine if it clearly communicates its purpose and how users can interact with it. This includes the clarity of text, icons, and other UI elements.
Step 2: Identify Ambiguities
- Identify any elements that are ambiguous or unclear. This can involve navigation labels, instructions for completing tasks, or the meaning of icons.
Step 3: Suggest Enhancements
- Recommend changes to improve clarity. This could involve rewording text, adding tooltips or help text, or redesigning confusing UI elements.
3. Conformity with User Expectations
Step 1: Determine User Expectations
- Understand user expectations based on common conventions and standards in web design, as well as specific expectations for the website’s domain.
Step 2: Evaluate Compliance
- Examine the website to see how well it aligns with these expectations. Look for deviations in layout, interaction patterns, and visual design.
Step 3: Recommend Adjustments
- Suggest changes to better align the website with user expectations. This may include altering the UI layout, changing interaction flows, or using more conventional icons and terminology.
4. Learnability
Step 1: Analyze Onboarding Process
- Evaluate how effectively a new user can learn to navigate and use the website. Consider the presence of tutorials, tooltips, or other onboarding aids.
Step 2: Test With New Users
- Conduct usability tests with users who are new to the website to identify areas where they struggle to understand or use the site.
Step 3: Enhance Educational Elements
- Based on findings, recommend improvements to help new users learn the system more effectively. This could involve adding or improving onboarding aids, simplifying complex features, or providing more contextual help.
5. Controllability
Step 1: Identify User Control Points
- List the areas on the website where users have control over their experience, such as customizing settings, navigating freely between sections, or inputting information.
Step 2: Evaluate Effectiveness and Flexibility
- Assess how effectively and flexibly users can control their interaction with the website. Identify any limitations or frustrations in user control.
Step 3: Recommend Improvements
- Suggest ways to increase user control and flexibility, such as adding customization options, improving navigation, or allowing users more freedom in how they complete tasks.
6. Use Error Robustness
Step 1: Identify Potential Errors
- List potential errors users might make while using the website, such as entering invalid data or navigating to the wrong section.
Step 2: Assess Error Management
- Evaluate how the website handles these errors, including the clarity of error messages, the ease of recovering from errors, and the prevention of errors where possible.
Step 3: Improve Error Handling
- Recommend improvements to error handling, such as clearer error messages, better error prevention mechanisms, and more intuitive error recovery processes.
7. User Engagement
Step 1: Evaluate Engagement Features
- Assess the presence and effectiveness of features designed to engage users, such as interactive elements, engaging content, and personalized experiences.
Step 2: Identify Engagement Gaps
- Identify areas where the website may fail to engage users or where engagement could be improved.
Step 3: Recommend Enhancements
- Suggest changes to increase user engagement, such as adding more interactive elements, improving content quality, or offering more personalized experiences.
By following these steps for each principle, evaluators can conduct a comprehensive heuristic evaluation, identifying usability issues and recommending improvements to enhance the user experience.