Usability Studies of Online Finding Aids: A Content Analysis of the Literature, 1998-2008

This study examines articles published between 1998 and 2008 that report on the usability of online finding aids. In an attempt to better understand the body of literature that exists on the usability of online finding aids, information about the publication, contributors, and study methods were coded and analyzed. Results showed that professors, practitioners, and students are publishing these studies about equally in the following sources: American Archivist, Archivaria, Journal of Archival Organization, and as Master's Papers at the School of Information and Library Science at the University of Chapel Hill. All but two studies were published in 2004 or later; one third of the total studies were published in 2008 alone. Onsite usability testing is the most frequently employed data collection technique. Studies overwhelmingly engaged subjects in retrieval tasks during the study. Display issues were most troublesome for subjects. Additionally, a variety of reporting practices were observed which made conducting the analysis that much more difficult because it was often difficult to determine what was actually done in the studies. Therefore, recommendations have been made for reporting on empirical studies that employ human subjects