The combined walkthrough: measuring behavioral, affective, and cognitive information in usability testing

This paper describes an experiment in studying users’ behavior, emotions, and cognitive processes in single usability testing sessions using an experimental method called the combined walkthrough. The users ’ behavior was studied using task times and completion rates, and emotions were studied using bipolar scales for experienced valence and arousal. Cognition was studied after each task by revisiting detected usability problems together with the users and applying an interactive method based on cognitive walkthrough to each usability problem. An interactive media application was tested with 16 participants using these methods. The results of the experiment showed that the developed methods were efficient in identifying usability problems and measuring the different aspects of interaction, which enabled the researchers to obtain a more multifaceted view of the users ’ interaction with the system and the nature of the problems encountered.