Usability Testing - SoenCapstone/GameOn GitHub Wiki

a. Purpose of the Study

The purpose of this usability study is to evaluate the usability of the app’s current development phase, with a focus on interaction flows related to team management and communication.

This study assesses whether users can understand and successfully navigate core areas of the application, including:

  • Team creation
  • User invitations
  • Payments
  • Team messaging

The goal is to identify usability issues related to navigation clarity, task flow, and feature discoverability, and to determine whether users can confidently complete essential actions without external guidance.

Microsoft Clarity session recordings are used to observe real user interactions and support qualitative usability analysis.

b. Target Users and Demographics

User Roles Tested

  • Players: Receive invitations, complete payments, and send/receive messages

Participant Criteria

Participants must:

  • Be between 18–35 years old
  • Have participated in amateur sports leagues or team-based activities
  • Be comfortable using mobile applications
  • Have basic familiarity with team communication tools (e.g., WhatsApp, Discord)

Number of Participants

  • 15 participants total
    • 15 players
    • 13 men / 2 women

This sample size aligns with established usability research guidelines and is sufficient to identify the majority of usability issues.

c. Testing Environment

  • Platform: iOS mobile application
  • App Version: Development build
  • Testing Type: Moderated usability testing
  • Location: Remote (screen sharing)
  • Recording Tool: Microsoft Clarity (session replays and interaction analysis)

Participants are informed that interaction data is recorded anonymously for usability evaluation purposes only.

d. Test Methodology

Test Format

Task-based usability testing using a think-aloud protocol. Participants complete predefined tasks while verbalizing their thoughts. Observers do not provide assistance unless the participant is unable to proceed.

Data Collected

  • Navigation paths taken
  • Hesitation, backtracking, and repeated taps
  • Microsoft Clarity session recordings
  • Post-task qualitative feedback

Session recordings are analyzed qualitatively to identify recurring usability patterns and interaction issues.

e. Usability Tasks

Task 1: Sign In

Objective: Assess whether users can successfully log into their account.
Participant Instruction: Sign into the app using your email and password.

Task 2: Locate the Spaces Section

Objective: Evaluate whether users can find the Spaces area of the app.
Participant Instruction: After signing in, find where you would go to view Spaces.

Task 3: Create a New Team

Objective: Test how easily users can create a team.
Participant Instruction: Create a new team and complete all required information fields.

Task 4: Invite a Member to the Team

Objective: Assess whether users can add a member to a team.
Participant Instruction: Invite a person to join the team you just created.

Task 5: Send a Direct Message

Objective: Evaluate the ease of sending a one-on-one message.
Participant Instruction: Send a message to a member of your team.

Task 6: Complete a Payment

Objective: Test whether users can easily complete a payment when a league is made public.
Participant Instruction: Create a league and make it public by paying.

f. Testing Procedure

Introduction

The facilitator explains the purpose of the study and provides a brief overview of the app and its features.

Task Execution

During the video session, participants verbalize their thoughts while completing each task. Observers take notes while Microsoft Clarity records interaction behavior.

Debrief

Participants discuss:

  • What felt easiest
  • What was confusing
  • Which feature they would improve first