Virginia Tech
Investigating the Applicability of Information Foraging Theory to Mobile Web Browsing
Abstract
dc:description.abstractMajor research studies have provided support for information scent based usability evaluation and have increased its parent theory's (Information Foraging theory) credibility in the HCI community. These studies have, directly and indirectly, found significant correlations between good information scent and good usability. We would like to investigate its application to less-studied platforms, such as web pages on PDAs and cell phones. The theory itself is not device specific and it implicitly assumes that information scent's importance is universal. However, all studies on the practical application of Information Foraging theory have been conducted with desktop computers. We would like to examine what role information scent plays in interfaces on mobile devices that are limited in usable screen space. For this project, we performed a controlled study with 28 participants on the BBC News web site and its PDA-optimized version. Various usability and information scent related indicators were measured and compared across devices. Contrary to our expectations, we did not find any statistically significant differences between the information scent indicators of the Desktop and PDA sessions and the paths across the devices were highly correlated.
Degree
thesis:*- Name thesis:degree_name
- Master of Science
- Level thesis:degree_level
- masters
- Discipline thesis:degree_discipline
- Computer Science
- Department dc:contributor.department
- Computer Science
- Grantor dc:publisher
- Virginia Tech
- Year dc:date.issued
- 2005
Author and committee
dc:creator, dc:contributor.*- Author dc:creator
-
- Lambros, Stelios
- Chair dc:contributor.committeechair
-
- Pérez-Quiñones, Manuel A.
- Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember
-
- Dunlap, Daniel R.
- Tatar, Deborah Gail
Subjects
dc:subject × 4Rights
dc:rights- Statement dc:rights
-
- In Copyright
- Licence dc:rights.uri
Identifiers
dc:identifier.*- Dc Identifier Other
- etd-05312005-190600
- OAI identifier oai:identifier
- oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/33357