PratyushaKangutkar

Research Goals

Evaluate Usability for Target Users: Assess the application's accessibility and user-friendliness for its intended audience.
Identify Usability Challenges: Pinpoint areas where users face difficulties or inefficiencies within the app.
Determine Resource Accessibility: Evaluate the app's effectiveness in helping users discover and utilize available resources.
Identify Opportunities for Enhancement: Explore potential improvements based on user feedback and interaction analysis.

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Participants

Recruitment Location:
- Nearby food pantries, including Mid-North and Paws Pantries.
Demographics:
- Diverse group of participants aged 20-55.
- Varying technology proficiency from low to high.
- Ranges from novice app users to frequent app users.
Selection Criteria:
- Participants chosen to represent the app's target audience, especially those needing access to nutritious resources.
Number:
- A total of 12 participants were involved in the study.

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Tasks

Search for Food Resources:
- Participants searched for food resources using the specific zipcode 46202.
Use WIC and SNAP Calculators:
- Participants navigated and used the WIC and SNAP calculators to assess usability.

Usability Challenges

Issues with Navigation and Map Interface
Many participants had trouble using the app's map interface, particularly with locating their position and understanding the map symbols.

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Difficulty Accessing Resources
Users struggled to find and access the listed resources effectively, with confusion about the operational status (open/closed) of the resource centers being a common issue.

Data Collection and Reliability Concerns
The Community Compass App relies on manual data collection methods, with updates occurring every three months or when issues are reported. This manual process can lead to occasional data inaccuracies, reducing the system's overall reliability.

Problems with Loading Times
Participants experienced delays when loading the map and resource information, which negatively affected the user experience.

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Understanding Calculator Functionality
Users had difficulty locating and understanding the WIC and SNAP calculators, with many first-time users finding their purpose and functionality unclear.

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Quantitative Measures

System Usability Scale (SUS): The app received an average SUS score of 63.125, which indicates that its usability is above average. However, the score suggests that while users find the app generally acceptable, it falls short of achieving high user satisfaction. This indicates a need for considerable improvements to enhance the overall user experience.

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Recommendations

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Enhanced Map and Navigation: Improve the map interface for clearer user location, simplify symbols, and integrate real-time updates.

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User-Friendly Design: Redesign the app for a cleaner look, automatic location detection, and multilingual support.

Accurate and Up-to-Date Information: Implement a verification system and ensure regular updates for resource details.

Boosted Performance and Accessibility: Address loading delays, enhance app responsiveness, and incorporate features like text-to-speech and large text.

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Comprehensive Support and Community Feedback: Revamp the help section with FAQs and tutorials, and include options for user reviews and improvement suggestions.

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By adopting these recommendations, the Community Compass app can greatly enhance its usability, reliability, and overall effectiveness, ensuring better access to essential resources for all users.

Community Compass

Community Compass

My Role

Tools

Duration