Writing an Empirical Report: The IMRaD Structure Dr. Lam TECM 4180

The value of report writing Oftentimes, your work doesn’t exist except for the fact that there is a report saying it existed. This is especially true in: Collaborative work Decision making points (meeting minutes) Research-based tasks

POLL TEXT CHRISLAM138 to 22333

IMR(a)D Introduction - Why was the study undertaken? What was the purpose of the research? Methods - When, where, and how was the study done? What materials were used or who was included in the study groups (patients, etc.)? Results - What answer was found to the research question; what did the study find? Was the tested hypothesis true? Discussions - What might the answer imply and why does it matter? How does it fit in with what other researchers have found? What are the perspectives for future research?

Structure of a Usability Report Executive Summary Introduction Methods Results Recommendations

Executive Summary Purpose: Provide all pertinent details for readers in a hurry Audience: Managers or other key decision makers Length: 1-2 pages What to include: A brief description of the object of evaluation (ie. What’s being tested) A brief description of the purpose of the evaluation A brief description of the evaluation method The 2-4 most important positive findings and the 2-4 most important usability problems General recommendations based on the findings, for example improved quality assurance (optional).

Introduction Purpose: ”What am I reading? What should I expect to find in this report?” Outline the topic and problem Topic: This report outlines the results of three usability tests. Problem: XXX organization has experienced problems with low online sales. Provide significance Why is it important that we study this problem? “They want to make their checkout process easier to improve sales.” Why is it important for the organization or other stakeholders? Provide specific objectives of the study What are goals of the research study? The objectives of this usability study are to: Analyze the effectiveness and ease-of-use of the checkout process. Provide specific recommendations for improving the checkout process.

Method Purpose: How was this usability study conducted? Will the results be reliable? Will the results be valid? Think of the methods section like a recipe. It should include enough detail so that another researcher could replicate the study. Components: Description of Participants/demographics Description of Testing environment Test Procedure (think of this like telling a story) Describe the steps of the test and the tasks

Results Purpose: What did you find out? Think of these as an objective report of the results. This section should NOT interject any personal opinions, theories or implications. Use graphical elements to easily display quantitative results Include screenshots when necessary Sub-sections: Objective results (time on task, successful completion rates, etc.) Subjective results (post-test questionnaire; think aloud; other comments) Summary of findings

Recommendations Purpose: How can I fix the website? Expect many readers to skip to this section and then go back to fill in the blanks Rank your recommendations based on your test results (high, medium, low) Provide them in an easy-to-follow numbered list Make sure there is enough detail in the recommendation for the user to actually implement the change.

How to identify recommendations Look for any errors and look at subjective feedback Look for commonalities among the two Look for consistency among users If only 1 user had a problem, then it’s likely not a common problem (perhaps you omit or rank it “low”) If all 3 had the same problem, it’s clearly a pattern Look for level of catastrophe in the error If they couldn’t complete an important task (e.g., checking out or paying), then even if only 1 user failed, it should be ranked “high”

Be helpful in recommendations Be specific enough that the reader can actually implement the recommendation Include screen shot of recommendation

Appendices Include testing materials, test logs, results, scripts, etc.