User Testing Exam Usability Metrics and Analysis 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What are the three core usability metrics defined by ISO 9241-11?
- Effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction (Correct answer)
- Speed, accuracy, and learnability
- Errors, completion rate, and engagement
- Discoverability, memorability, and utility
Correct answer: Effectiveness, efficiency, and satisfaction
ISO 9241-11 defines usability in terms of effectiveness (goal achievement), efficiency (resources used), and satisfaction (user experience quality).
Question 2: What is the System Usability Scale (SUS)?
- A 10-item Likert-scale questionnaire that produces a 0–100 score measuring perceived usability (Correct answer)
- A 5-point rating scale for single-task satisfaction
- A benchmark tool comparing products against ISO usability standards
- An automated tool that scores interface accessibility
Correct answer: A 10-item Likert-scale questionnaire that produces a 0–100 score measuring perceived usability
The SUS is a validated, widely used 10-item questionnaire scored 0–100 that provides a quick, reliable measure of perceived usability.
Question 3: What SUS score is generally considered to indicate 'good' usability?
- 70 or above (Correct answer)
- 50 or above
- 90 or above
- Any score above 60
Correct answer: 70 or above
A SUS score of 68 is the industry average; scores of 70 and above are generally considered good, and 80+ is excellent.
Question 4: What does 'error rate' measure in a usability test?
- The frequency of mistakes participants make while attempting to complete tasks (Correct answer)
- The number of system crashes during testing
- The percentage of tasks that end in failure
- How often participants deviate from the happy path
Correct answer: The frequency of mistakes participants make while attempting to complete tasks
Error rate tracks how many times participants take incorrect actions during tasks, indicating problem areas in the interface.
Question 5: What is a 'lostness metric' in usability research?
- A measure of how much a participant's navigation deviates from the optimal path through a website (Correct answer)
- A self-reported rating of how confused a participant felt
- The number of help requests a participant makes during a task
- A measure of how often participants get distracted by off-task content
Correct answer: A measure of how much a participant's navigation deviates from the optimal path through a website
Lostness quantifies navigation disorientation by comparing the number of nodes visited and revisited against the optimal path length.
Question 6: What is the Single Ease Question (SEQ)?
- A single 7-point rating scale asking participants how difficult a task was, administered immediately after each task (Correct answer)
- A yes/no question asking if the participant completed the task
- A verbal prompt asking participants to describe their overall experience
- A post-session questionnaire covering all tasks at once
Correct answer: A single 7-point rating scale asking participants how difficult a task was, administered immediately after each task
The SEQ is a validated single-item 7-point scale measuring perceived task difficulty immediately after each task, making it quick and sensitive to per-task usability issues.
What are the three core usability metrics defined by ISO 9241-11?