Information Experience Lab (IE Lab): Work with us! We test your technology: is it user-friendly and usable?

"The whole point of human-centered design is to tame complexity, to turn what would appear to be a complicated tool into one that fits the task, that is understandable, usable, enjoyable." - Donald Norman

The Information Experience Lab (IE Lab)

Work with us! We offer services to test your technology, user interface and human-computer interaction. Is your system user friendly, is your target audience exciting to use it? Is the system or product usable and useful? We can help with identifying strengths and weaknesses! We help to improve your system to gain attention of even more people!

"It is far better to adapt the technology to the user than to force the user to adapt to the technology." - Larry Marine

Founded in 2003, the mission of our Information Experience Lab (IE Lab) is to improve digital information and communication systems through research methodologies that blend traditional usability evaluation with user experience data, human information behavior research and socio-technical integration design. The IE Lab has provided service to a range of clients across Missouri, including MU researchers, corporate, non-profit and other academic partners. The IE Lab is operated by the School of Information Science & Learning Technologies (SISLT) in the College of Education at the University of Missouri and consists of the Director of Research is Dr. Isa Jahnke, the post-doctoral fellow Dr. Fatih Demir, the manager Neeley Current and several SISLT doctoral students, who are trained as usability and UX researchers. The website is https://ielab.missouri.edu

On the photo: Research assistants in Fall 2020.

We, the IE lab team offers following services, methods and expertise:

1. Usability Testing Services: IE Lab provides usability testing services that involve best practices and techniques used in user-centered interaction design to evaluate software by testing with end users. This gives direct input on how target users use the system. Several other test instruments such as scripted instructions, and pre- and post-test questionnaires are also used to gather feedback on the software being tested. Upon completion of interviews, analysis, user satisfaction results and system recommendations are provided to improve the function of the software.
2. IE Lab Team Expertise: IE Lab members have knowledge about and experience conducting moderated and un-moderated user studies (interviews, focus groups, think aloud testing) as well as providing suggestions and recommendations for system design (heuristic evaluation, cognitive walkthrough, socio-technical walkthrough) at all stages of system development process.
3. Stages of Usability Testing: The IE Lab projects use a variety of usability methods that can be used throughout the design process until the final launch of a web-based technology (e.g., user needs assessment, study of initial design of the application (wireframe), study of partially-functional software application, study of the completed application, to determine problems and to further scale-up with additional large-scale users.
4. Human-Centered, sociotechnical integration methods. Traditional usability studies focus on human-computer interaction issues. The IE Lab expands this tradition with sociotechnical integration methods, end users as co-designers, preparing the users for co-evolutionary growth of the design-in-use and design-in-practice.
5. IE Lab Tools: The IE Lab has access to the following data collection and analysis tools: Tobii remote and mobile eye tracking technology, Morae (Recorder, Observer and Manager), Optimal Sort (information architecture), Treejack (information findability) and Qualtrics (Web-based survey software).

The Allen Institute serves as the ground base for the IE lab. The Allen Institute for Research on Learning, Information & Technology provides a unifying and dynamic umbrella for the research and development activities of faculty, staff, and students. The Allen Institute, located in London Hall, offers an infrastructure of support and 10,000 square feet of collaborative space wherein the vital inquiry of SISLT and its partners can be enhanced. Allen Institute can host meetings, workshops and provide workstations for IELab and student teams. Students will have the ability to reserve these workstations for use on a regular basis. Neeley Current, Allen Institute Manager, provides administrative oversight for the facility; in addition, a part-time student assistant contributes to its operation.