Discovery Interface Usability Testing

Discovery interface usability testing evaluates how well a library's discovery layer, the single search box that searches across catalog, articles, and databases, actually serves users, by watching representative people attempt realistic search tasks and measuring whether they succeed, how long they take, and where they stumble. Grounded in Jakob Nielsen's usability engineering, the method treats the interface as something to be tested empirically rather than judged by expert opinion alone. Fagan and colleagues' 2012 study of a discovery tool at an academic library exemplifies the approach: students performed authentic tasks while observers recorded success, errors, and think-aloud commentary, surfacing concrete problems with facets, result relevance, and terminology. The output is a prioritized list of usability problems and metrics that guide iterative redesign of the discovery experience.