Markov chain to analyze web usability of a university website using eye tracking data

Abstract

Web usability is a crucial feature of a website, allowing users to easily find information in a short time. Eye tracking data registered during the execution of tasks allow to measure web usability in a more objective way compared to questionnaires. In this work, we evaluated the web usability of the website of the University of Cagliari through the analysis of eye tracking data with qualitative and quantitative methods. Performances of two groups of students (i.e., high school and university students) across 10 different tasks were compared in terms of time to completion, number of fixations and difficulty ratio. Transitions between different areas of interest (AOI) were analyzed in the two groups using Markov chain. For the majority of tasks, we did not observe significant differences in the performances of the two groups, suggesting that the information needed to complete the tasks could easily be retrieved by students with little previous experience in using the website. For a specific task, high school students showed a worse performance based on the number of fixations and a different Markov chain stationary distribution compared to university students. These results allowed to highlight elements of the pages that can be modified to improve web usability.

Tracing Student Activity Patterns in E-Learning Environments: Insights into Academic Performance

“…Furthermore, Yuan employed a Markov Chain Model to enhance classroom teaching quality evaluation in universities, proposing an improved hybrid evaluation method and conducting comparative experiments to promote continuous improvement in teaching standards and overall educational quality [37]. Zammarchi, Frigau and Mola evaluated the web usability of a University in Italy website using eye tracking data, utilizing Markov chain analysis to study transitions between different areas of interest and suggesting areas for improvement in web usability based on fixation counts and the Markov chain analysis [38]. Paxinou et al investigated how virtual simulations enhance learning outcomes in science labs in a Greek University using a Markov Chain Model to predict students' performance, proposing that learners trained with virtual reality exhibit higher proficiency in conducting experiments compared to traditional methods [39].…”

Usability of University Websites as Information Sources: A Review and Synthesis Based on 2021 Publications Indexed in Scopus Database

“…Zammarchi et al [24] studied the web usability of the University of Cagliari's website using qualitative and quantitative methodologies to analyze eye-tracking data. They concluded that the information needed to complete the tasks could be easily acquired by students with limited prior experience with the website.…”

“…UWs had been well investigated for improvement of usability for all users in general [3,5,8,[10][11][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24], such as students-lectures [4,13,25], people with disabilities [26], and even during the pandemic time [26][27][28][29]. However, there has been no holistic understanding and general trends based on the above literature on UW.…”

Improving the interface of an e-commerce website by applying universal design principles

“…W artykule Markov chain to analyze web usability of a university website using eye tracking data [16] analizowano dane ruchu gałek ocznych w dwóch grupach: 56 osobowej grupie uczniów szkoły średniej oraz 66 osobowej grupie studentów, którzy wykonywali 10 zadań na stronie uniwersytetu Cagliari. Zebrane dane poddano analizie łańcuchem Markova oraz przedstawiono szczegółową procedurę przeprowadzenia takiego badania.…”