Determining the usability, user experience, and continuance use of a mobile application and an online portal: A comparative case study
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Date
2023
Authors
Mhlongo, Thobani
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Free State
Abstract
Background: The increasing number of users with access to the internet, computers, and mobile devices propels most institutions to avail their services through online portals and mobile applications. However, these online portals and mobile applications depend on users utilising them. There are instances where users underutilise or completely opt out of these platforms. The reasons may include poor usability and negative user experience. This is a cause for concern since funds are invested in their development with the anticipated return on investment.
Aim: This study aimed to compare the usability, user experience, and continuance use of a regulatory institution's mobile application and online portal with respect to performance, user satisfaction, and continuance intentions.
Methodology: This single case study followed an explanatory sequential design, wherein the initial phase consisted of data collection using a self-administered questionnaire (quantitative phase). For the second phase, the data was collected using an interview protocol (qualitative phase). The self-administered questionnaire compared the usability, user experience, and continuance use of the mobile application and the online portal. The interview protocol was used to further explain the quantitative results. Participant recruitment used systematic random sampling for the quantitative phase and purposive sampling for the qualitative phase. The analytical approach involved descriptive and inferential statistics, and thematic analysis.
Findings: The results established that the online portal was more usable than the mobile application; users had a positive user experience with the online portal and were more likely to use the online portal in future, but not so much with the mobile application. The contributing factors to the online portal findings were its efficiency, user-friendliness, understandability, and learnability. In addition, inefficiency, errors, limited functionality, and lack of user-friendliness issues were identified as contributors to the mobile application's negative experience and moderate usability. Regarding continuance use, the quantitative and qualitative results suggested that participants were keen to use the online portal in the future. However, the quantitative results for the mobile application indicated that the participants did not have interest in using the mobile application again in future, despite the interview results indicating otherwise. Participants identified improvement in efficiency and visual appeal as conditions for their future re-use of the mobile application.
Description
Dissertation (M.Sc.(Computer Science and Informatics))--University of the Free State, 2023
Keywords
Usability, user experience, continuance use, continuance intentions, Human-Computer Interaction, mobile application, online portal