TABLE OF CONTENTS The aim of this chapter is to introduce to some of the major research methods that can be used in mobile HCI research. This will focus particularly on verbal protocols, heuristics and cognitive walkthroughs. For a comprehensive review of other specific HCI research methods have a look at the further reading section at the end of this chapter for guidance.
The idea of using verbal protocols as a form of usability evaluation was originally put forward by Ericsson and Simon (1985). The idea behind this is that it could potentially provide you, the researcher or usability professional, with information on what the user is actually thinking about when they are interacting with a service. Researchers will often use some form of verbal protocol in conjunction with observational data in order to get as much information as possible from the participant in the study. What kind of information could you get from this form of data collection? Well you may find out how a person is going to tackle a particular task that you have asked them to perform. For example, by adopting this approach, you may discover what menu items are not as clearly worded as they could be, by the user talking about the problems they are having in choosing the correct menu item. In addition, it may let you know that the navigation structure is not as clear-cut as you originally thought it was. You may also get feedback on their subjective feelings at particular...
