Initiatives
Sentiment & Perception
Understanding how our readers and contributors perceive and engage with our products, processes and tools
Overview
The Wikimedia Foundation Product Design and Strategy team has an ongoing series of studies aimed at understanding how our readers and contributors in different contexts use and perceive the interfaces they engage with - on desktop and mobile platforms. Included here are usability studies for new or improved features as well as more open-ended inquiries aimed at understanding how our users describe their expectations and perceive their experiences around finding content, reading, and contributing on Wikipedia.
Studies
-
IP Masking Prototype Usability Testing
Moderated usability tests that explore the functions of an “IP Masking” prototype in English, Spanish, Arabic, and Japanese. -
Reading Wikipedia
Understanding what readers in diverse language communities think they are doing as they read Wikipedia, their motivations for reading, the navigational structures they perceive and use, and the ways in which they interact with information. -
Image Suggestions for Article Sections
Usability tests for a feature that suggests images to experienced contributors to add to an article section. -
New Page Patrollers
An interview series with English Wikipedia New Page Patrollers to develop a shared understanding of how new page patrolling works on the English Wikipedia and to identify potential areas for improvement grounded in today’s patrolling practices. -
Campaigns Event Registration Page User Testing
Usability testing of the campaigns registration feature that enables organizers and participants to register for events on the Wiki platform. -
Newcomer Positive Reinforcement
Cross-cultural feedback on approaches to Positive Reinforcement through review of static designs. -
Special Search Improvements: Arabic User Testing
When someone searches on Wikipedia but there isn’t an article matching their search term, they arrive at “special:search,”. This project tests new concepts for this feature with Arabic readers.
-
Special Search Improvements: Spanish User Testing
When someone searches on Wikipedia but there isn’t an article matching their search term, they arrive at “special:search,”. This project tests new concepts for this feature with Spanish readers.
-
Wikifunctions: Usability of Bangla Prototype
Usability testing of Wikifunctions prototype with Bangla speaking programmers and developers.
-
Verifiability on Wikipedia
This three-language study provides foundational understanding for how editors work with available resources to meet the standards required for article quality.
-
Table of Contents & Sticky Header
This project tests the concept of a sticky header and the table of contents element as a part of a reader-focused desktop interface improvement initiative by the Web team.
-
Usability of the Wikipedia KaiOS app
The Inuka product team is developing a Wikipedia app for KaiOS feature phones. This team focuses on developing new experiences and new re-uses of wiki content for readers in emerging contexts. This research evaluates usability and user understanding of the basic app elements and workflows.
-
Searching on Commons: Structured Data Across Wikimedia
The SDAW program has created prototypes that reimagine searching for images on Wikimedia Commons. This project tests usability of prototypes and captures users’ expectations and desires in their search experiences on the wikis. -
Android App Suggested Edits
As part of the iterative participant testing and development for the app’s Section Editing feature, this project addresses user difficulties using and understanding the Contributions screens.
-
Readers’ Perceptions of Desktop Wikipedia
This study seeks to understand the experience and sentiment of new and casual readers on Wikipedia.
-
Micro-contributions on the Android App
This research studies the factors that motivate and retain Wikipedia editors who use the section editor tool on the Android app and how to increase their ability to successfully complete tasks using the tool.