Understanding the Nature of Task Analysis in Web Design

Abstract

Designing usable Web-based interfaces challenges practitioners to carefully consider end-user behaviour and requirements. Unfortunately, in meeting this challenge, human-computer interaction (HCI), task analysis is often poorly understood and applied during Web design activities. Rather than purely evaluating usability against prescriptive guidelines, we argue that designing for Web-based interaction requires a more holistic and descriptive approach. This chapter provides an overview of cognitive and postcognitive HCI task analysis frameworks, and their respective abilities to capture a systemic view of stakeholder requirements. As such, this chapter provides a valuable resource for researchers and practitioners alike.