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The Impact of Instant Messaging Features on a Collaboration Platform's Usability

Gilbertsson, Erik LU and Malmström, Julius LU (2023) MAMM01 20222
Ergonomics and Aerosol Technology
Certec - Rehabilitation Engineering and Design
Abstract
The use of online collaboration platforms has increased drastically in recent years with the rise of remote work. The focus of this Master thesis was to explore what impact different instant messaging features have on the usability of such collaboration platforms. Specifically, the thesis aimed to answer the following research questions: 1) What instant messaging features are essential for good usability in a collaboration platform? 2) How much can an instant messaging feature improve the perceived usability of a collaboration platform? 3) How are new features received by experienced versus inexperienced users?

Through a user-centered, iterative design process utilizing qualitative methods such as heuristic evaluation, user interviews... (More)
The use of online collaboration platforms has increased drastically in recent years with the rise of remote work. The focus of this Master thesis was to explore what impact different instant messaging features have on the usability of such collaboration platforms. Specifically, the thesis aimed to answer the following research questions: 1) What instant messaging features are essential for good usability in a collaboration platform? 2) How much can an instant messaging feature improve the perceived usability of a collaboration platform? 3) How are new features received by experienced versus inexperienced users?

Through a user-centered, iterative design process utilizing qualitative methods such as heuristic evaluation, user interviews and user-based tests, a prototype reply feature was developed for an existing collaboration platform. Usability evaluations conducted on both the original and updated versions of the platform showed that the usability was significantly increased by the addition of the new feature.

The findings indicate that certain instant messaging features can significantly impact the usability of a collaboration platform, and that features tackling issues with organization, structure, and findability are prioritized by users. Lastly, lack of experience in a platform does not seem to affect how a user perceives the usability of the platform. (Less)
Abstract (Swedish)
Användandet av samarbetsplattformer har ökat drastiskt under senare år i och med att distansarbete blivit allt mer vanligt. Målet med den här masteruppsatsen var att utforska vilken inverkan olika chattfunktioner har på användbarheten av sådana samarbetsplattformer. Mer specifikt syftade uppsatsen till att svara på följande forskningsfrågor: 1) Vilka chattfunktioner är avgörande för god användbarhet i en samarbetsplattform? 2) Hur mycket kan en ny chattfunktion förbättra den uppfattade användbarheten av en samarbetsplattform? 3) Hur tas nya funktioner emot av erfarna respektive oerfarna användare?

Genom en användarcentrerad, iterativ designprocess med kvalitativa metoder så som heuristisk utvärdering, användarintervjuer och... (More)
Användandet av samarbetsplattformer har ökat drastiskt under senare år i och med att distansarbete blivit allt mer vanligt. Målet med den här masteruppsatsen var att utforska vilken inverkan olika chattfunktioner har på användbarheten av sådana samarbetsplattformer. Mer specifikt syftade uppsatsen till att svara på följande forskningsfrågor: 1) Vilka chattfunktioner är avgörande för god användbarhet i en samarbetsplattform? 2) Hur mycket kan en ny chattfunktion förbättra den uppfattade användbarheten av en samarbetsplattform? 3) Hur tas nya funktioner emot av erfarna respektive oerfarna användare?

Genom en användarcentrerad, iterativ designprocess med kvalitativa metoder så som heuristisk utvärdering, användarintervjuer och användarbaserade tester, utvecklades en prototyp-funktion för att svara på chattmeddelanden i en befintlig samarbetsplattform. Användbarhetsutvärderingar som utfördes på både den ursprungliga och uppdaterade versionen av plattformen visade att användbarheten ökade signifikant efter tillägget av den nya funktionen.

Resultatet visar på att vissa chattfunktioner kan ge en signifikant ökning av användbarheten i en samarbetsplattform och att funktioner som löser problem relaterade till organisering, struktur och sökbarhet prioriteras av användare. Slutligen verkar det inte som att brist på erfarenhet i en plattform påverkar hur en användare uppfattar användbarheten av plattformen. (Less)
Popular Abstract
With more and more people opting for remote work from the comfort of their own homes, collaboration platforms have seen a massive surge of new users. The most popular platform, Microsoft Teams, reported an astonishing quarter of a billion active users in 2022. With such a wide reach, it’s increasingly important to design these types of software with consideration for those who use them. In this work, we examined how to apply this user-centered approach to design and how it can lead to a better final product. It turns out, just adding one new feature can make a big difference!
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Gilbertsson, Erik LU and Malmström, Julius LU
supervisor
organization
course
MAMM01 20222
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Collaboration Platforms, Instant Messaging, Chat, User-Centered Design, Usability
language
English
id
9108789
date added to LUP
2023-01-27 11:10:18
date last changed
2023-01-27 11:10:18
@misc{9108789,
  abstract     = {{The use of online collaboration platforms has increased drastically in recent years with the rise of remote work. The focus of this Master thesis was to explore what impact different instant messaging features have on the usability of such collaboration platforms. Specifically, the thesis aimed to answer the following research questions: 1) What instant messaging features are essential for good usability in a collaboration platform? 2) How much can an instant messaging feature improve the perceived usability of a collaboration platform? 3) How are new features received by experienced versus inexperienced users?

Through a user-centered, iterative design process utilizing qualitative methods such as heuristic evaluation, user interviews and user-based tests, a prototype reply feature was developed for an existing collaboration platform. Usability evaluations conducted on both the original and updated versions of the platform showed that the usability was significantly increased by the addition of the new feature. 

The findings indicate that certain instant messaging features can significantly impact the usability of a collaboration platform, and that features tackling issues with organization, structure, and findability are prioritized by users. Lastly, lack of experience in a platform does not seem to affect how a user perceives the usability of the platform.}},
  author       = {{Gilbertsson, Erik and Malmström, Julius}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{The Impact of Instant Messaging Features on a Collaboration Platform's Usability}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}