Usability: A Critical Analysis and a Taxonomy
David Alonso-Ríos, A. Vázquez-García, Eduardo Mosqueira-Rey, Vicente Moret‐Bonillo · International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction · 2009
A major obstacle to the implantation of User-Centered Design in the real world is the fact that no precise definition of the concept of usability exists that is widely accepted and applied in practice. Generally speaking, the literature tends to define usability in overly brief and ambiguous terms and to describe its application in informal terms. This is one of the main reasons why ad hoc techniques predominate in usability study methodologies. The aims of this article are to investigate the concept of usability and to describe it by means of a detailed taxonomy that is organized hierarchically and that contains exhaustive descriptions of usability attributes. This taxonomy can be used to support different stages in the development of usable systems.