As a User researcher, perhaps you have run a dozen over user research projects, or maybe even hundreds. With the objective to discover as many user insights or usability issues as possible, researchers try several research methods – from engaging usability experts conducting usability heuristics review, to conducting in-depth interviews and often the quicker method, unmoderated usability testing.
Explore the importance of various methods in user research, including the efficient yet effective unmoderated usability testing, in enhancing user experiences and uncovering valuable insights.
The phrase “as a user” in stakeholder discussions always refers to that single user using a product. The user research practice almost always involves engaging one participant at a time. Engaging two or three participants in one usability testing session / user interviews remains unheard to most researchers, unless their background is in market research. To be clear, we are not talking about mini-Focus groups discussions (FGD) here.
In market research, a moderator engaging two or three participants simultaneously has been practiced for qualitative research. Off late we have seen interest from a couple of UX researchers who are inclined to do dyads and triads. The research outcome of this rather “new” method have been exciting for most UX researchers we engaged with.
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Key Aspects of the Co-Participation Method
- Active User Involvement:Participants are not just providing feedback but actively contributing to the entire research and design process, from problem definition to solution ideation and development.
- Collaborative & Co-Creative:The focus is on a partnership between researchers, designers, and users, with shared decision-making and a collective goal to create solutions.
- Empowerment of Users:Users are recognized as experts in their own experiences, and their knowledge is valued and utilized to shape the final design.
- User-Centered Outcomes:The process ensures that solutions are designed with people, not just for them, leading to more relevant and impactful products and services.
- Goes Beyond Traditional Methods:It extends beyond the limitations of interviews and surveys, which can be passive, by actively engaging users in generative activities.
What are Dyads?
For qualitative research, some user segments call for the need of Dyads and Triads. For instance, some products are meant to be used with two or more users who may be related or, know each other in some way. Examples of such Dyads of users include Sports Coach and their student athlete, Mother / Father and a child, Spouses, Siblings, Twins, etc.
However, Dyads need not always involve people who are related with each other – the UX researchers could engage two participants who may not even know each other. Engaging two participants who do not know each other is especially useful to get contradictory or totally opposite views about the product or research topic from the target audience.
Research has shown that Dyad engagements result in discovery of more usability problems as compared to conducting a usability test with only one participant.
What are Triads?
Triads are more common in market research than UX research. The participants could be people of similar views or from contrasting characteristics or opinions. For usability testing, three participants is considered a crowd and it also does not allow for significant probing upon discovery of a usability problem. Triads are not common in UX research and in our experience we have not seen that practice among UX researchers.
Why use Dyads and Triads?
These engagements have a certain advantage over Focus Groups (FGD), in the sense they allow for better segmentation and time for in-depth probing. Participants connected with each other are likely to use the product in certain settings e.g. a child might use the product under parent supervision and parent would make a purchase decision after review of the product usability. Dyads and Triads also help in simulating real world usage conditions besides ensuring to gather diverse views and feedback from participants.
When not to use Dyads and Triads?
Smell Budget constraints? Cost is a major consideration when choosing to use Dyads and Triads. Other than situation specific usage scenarios of a product or in exploratory research there are no specific benefits of using dyads or triads. Just like Focus groups, the moderator has to be experienced with handling of multiple participants so that time is effectively used and useful insights are uncovered.
Besides the ability and experience of the facilitator / moderator, the co-participants may find the presence of the facilitator as intrusive and maybe hesitant to be at their natural self – this could happen for sensitive topics like financial investing. In those situations, using an unmoderated think-aloud might be a better option.
Research has compared the effect on discovery of the number of usability problems using other methods in compared to Dyads. They found minor differences. When two participants are in a session together, they generally feel at more ease, and they interact with the product or service as they would with each other in their day-to-day lives.
That includes explaining about the product or service to each other and answering each others’ questions with reasoning.
While the debate continues on whether moderated, unmoderated usability testing or a combination of both is most effective, the researchers’ quest of, uncovering as many usability problems and as early as possible remains spirited. Dyads, as a new method are making their way into UX research. We observe that more user researchers are getting onboard.
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Frequently asked questions
Why use 40 participants in quantitative UX research?
Why is 40 participants often recommended for quantitative UX research? Well, this sample size strikes a balance between precision, risk, and practicality, allowing researchers to draw meaningful insights while managing resources effectively
What are user research methods?
User research methods are techniques used to understand users and gather insights for product development, including qualitative methods like user interviews, usability testing, and field studies to explore motivations and behaviors, and quantitative methods such as surveys, A/B testing, and analytics to measure user data and identify trends. Common methods include interviews, focus groups, usability tests, card sorting, tree testing, surveys, A/B tests, heatmaps, and analytics. The choice of method depends on the specific situation and the type of insights needed to inform design decisions.
What is participatory design in UX research?
Participatory design is built on the principles of collaboration, co-creation, and empowerment. Users contribute to the design process, which allows them to provide feedback, suggest ideas, and participate in decision-making.
What is the 5 user rule?
The 5-user rule is a principle proposed by usability expert Jakob Nielsen, suggesting that testing with five users is sufficient to uncover 85% of usability problems in a product. The reasoning behind this rule lies in the diminishing returns of usability testing.
Is 20 participants enough for quantitative research?
As a quantitative method, it relies on having a large pool of responses to provide a reliable result. 40 participants for preference testing is a good number (as NNgroup suggests), however, other sources quote 20-30 as also being acceptable.
What are the 4 types of research methods?
Four commonly used research methods are Descriptive, Correlational, Experimental, and Diagnostic, which are classified by their purpose and goals. Other categorizations include Qualitative (non-numerical data) and Quantitative (numerical data) methods, or by whether the research involves Primary (new data) or Secondary (existing data) sources.
