Literature Review

Posted: September 9th, 2013

Literature Review

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Table of Contents

Introduction…………………………………………………………………3

Method………………………………………………………………………………………………3

Results……………………………………………………………………….3

Critique……………………………………………………………………… 4

Recommendations and Conclusions…………………………………………5

References……………………………………………………………………7

Literature Review

Introduction

            The purpose of this literature review is to offer a theoretical structure for the project topic, do users of a website take a long time to develop a liking for a website, and once liking is established, how does liking influence user interaction with the website? This review will include identifying what triggers delays in developing a liking for websites by a user. This review will also discuss the relevant factors to consider when designing a website to ensure that a user develops a liking to a website more readily.

Method

In order to understand the dynamics involved in website preferences, a review has to be carried out to determine the factors that affect website popularity. The literature considered in this study is derived from a number of articles and books relevant to the question under study. The question of the positive or negative response of a user towards a website when visiting these them is the main subject of inquiry. The articles were selected using three criteria. First, the material had to contain information about why people find some websites to be good, two why they dislike websites and three, what would make them take a long time before developing a liking to a website.

Results                                                                                                                                  

From the literature review, it has been established that the likeability of a website is based on what interests the user, Age and gender, personality, contents of the website, graphic or among other factors. However, interactivity of a website is vital. Difficult interfaces are easily abandoned by users in search of better interfaces. The target group in web developing was also considered as being extremely necessary.

Critique

There are various reasons as to why people would like a website or not. The reasons are as many as the human race since not everyone can have the exact tastes and preferences. A website has various purposes. Some websites are meant to transact business, others are meant for social interactions, for entertainment, for education purposes and a horde of other reasons. The research shows that the design of a website is inherently about the user and not what the designer believes is appropriate. The activity of developing an effective website is one that requires substantial effort and skill (Lawrence & Tavakol, 2006).

Before developing a website, the web developer has to determine what the purpose for the website is going to be. By determining the purpose of the website, one will have identified the target visitors of that site. It is essential therefore that the interaction techniques are such that they can attract user to your website. The range of richness of interaction techniques on websites offers users unprecedented variety and choice in interacting with an interface (Sundar, Bellur, Oh & Jia 2011). It is important that the interface is friendly to the user. Sundar (2010) asserts interactivity is an attribute of technology and not the user. Lee, Jung & Nass (2011), explore the extent to which human computer interaction can go and believe that the future lies in employing the use of speech in when accessing the computer. This is an option that web developers should explore and ensure that websites are as engaging as possible. Therefore, developers have to design websites that are simplifies the user experience.

Another import factor is the gender of the user. It should be understood that not all websites would meet the approval of both genders. There are some websites men will not find it easy to develop a liking. This is simply because their interests lie elsewhere. Balka & Richard (2000) suggest that women are more like to read all contents on the website. A wordy website will be fit for women, but men are visual beings and relate to websites that are more pictographic. Aesthetics is advocated as one of the key factors influencing consumer judgment (Dong, 2007). The more appealing a website is the more the visitors it gets.

The content of a website is extremely important. People like websites that have entertaining information. Entertainment content is usually determined by the age factor. There are websites that allows a user to interact with others on a website when they get on to the same web page. This creates the illusion of a conversation. This phenomenon is refereed to as chatroom conversations. The chart room can be considered the domain of the youth. Teenagers chat with different groups of friends using several instant messaging services while at the same time sending emails (Preece, 2001). Therefore, to appeal to the younger generation, it is essential to have such innovations in a website. It was found that older adults in the United States are the fastest growing demographic, and the largest growing group of internet user (Hart, Chaparro & Halcomb 2008).

            It has been found that a site designed to conform to users” wants and needs in content, navigation and appearance indeed fosters positive attitudes toward websites by users (Coleman, Lieber & Kurpius, 2012). When the state of Louisiana wanted to increase the rate of civil involvement in the creating a budget through the website, they asked the citizens what they would like to see on the website. When these views were implemented in design, involvement increased. It is therefore crucial for those who contract web designers to create websites to “perform a needs assessment” (Cook & Dupras, 2004) to evaluate the needs and desires of users.

Recommendations and conclusions

             The aim of this review was threefold. It was essential to determine the reasons as to why a website would be popular and at the same time determine its lack thereof. It was also vital to determine what delayed the response to liking a website. This was done by consulting various literatures that guide the assumptions made in this review. However, literature review can only reveal so much about a subject under study. It is important therefore necessary, that future research generate empirical data by conducting field research on the subject. This would be relevant in authenticating the findings in this review.

References

Coleman, R., Lieber, P., Mendelson, A. L., & Kurpius, D. D. (April 01, 2008). Public life and the internet: If you build a better website, will citizens become engaged? New Media and Society, 10, 2, 179-201.

Dong, Z. (2007). Website aesthetics: Does it matter? A study on effects of perception of website aesthetics, usability and content quality on online purchase intention. Retrieved from http://www.scholarbank.nus.edu.sg/handle/10635/2318Top of Form

Lawrence, D., & Tavakol, S. (2007). Balanced website design: Optimising aesthetics, usability and purpose. London: Springer.

Sundar, S. S., Bellur, S., Oh, J., Jia, H., & 13th IFIP TC 13 International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction, INTERACT 2011. (September 20, 2011). Calls for interaction: The more the better? user experience of 3D carousel and additional interaction techniques. Lecture Notes in Computer Science (including Subseries Lecture Notes in Artificial Intelligence and Lecture Notes in Bioinformatics), 487-490.

Preece, J. (September 01, 2001). Sociability and usability in online communities: determining and measuring success. Behaviour and Information Technology, 20, 5, 347-356.

Sundar, S. (January 01, 2004). Theorizing Interactivity’s Effects. The Information Society, 20, 5, 385-389.

Cook, D.A. & Dupras, D.M., and (June 2004). A Practical Guide To Developing Effective Web Based Learning. Journal of General Internal Medicine, Volume 19, Issue 6, pages 698-707.

Hart, T. A., Chaparro, B. S., & Halcomb, C. G. (May 01, 2008). Evaluating Websites for Older Adults: Adherence to "Senior-Friendly" Guidelines and End-User Performance. Behaviour & Information Technology, 27, 3, 191-199.

Lee, K. M., Jung, Y., & Nass, C. (February 23, 2011). Can User Choice Alter Experimental Findings in Human–Computer Interaction? Similarity Attraction Versus Cognitive Dissonance in Social Responses to Synthetic Speech. International Journal of Human-Computer Interaction, 27, 4, 307-322.

IFIP TC9/WG9.1 International Conference on Women, Work, and Computerization, Balka, E., & Smith, R. (2000). Women, work, and computerization: Charting a course to the future: IFIP TC9 WG9.1 Seventh International Conference on Women, Work, and Computerization, June 8-11, 2000, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Boston: Kluwer Academic Publishers.